Legal Nurse Consultant Career
Legal Nursing Career Overview
Interested in becoming a legal nurse consultant (LNC)? Registered nurses with any background are candidates for becoming a legal nurse consultant. Current legal nurse consultants have backgrounds in telemetry, cardiology, labor and delivery, obstetrics, med-surge, intensive care and many other fields. Many legal nurse consultants develop an interest in this career without expecting to. What is meant by this is that often nurses are asked to review medical records in the hospital or office setting to assess risk or help determine a defense for a malpractice case and find it is exactly what they have been looking for in a career. Legal nurse consultants in the past conducted their own “crash course” in legal education while on the job. Now days there are legal nurse consultant programs and seminars that will prepare you for this exciting and new career path. Read this interview with a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant to get an in-depth look at this career: Legal Nurse Consultant: Using Nursing Skills in a New Way
Legal Nurse Consulting Job Description
Legal nurse consultants work in a variety of environments including hospitals, law firms, attorney general’s offices, insurance companies, consulting firms and related areas. Many Legal nurse consultants have started their own consulting firms and hire themselves out to the previously mentioned organizations.
Legal nurse consultants conduct many different research and presentation duties including, locating and preparing witnesses, researching the validity of psychological or neurological symptoms, developing evidence discovery plans, review and screening of cases, preparation of opinion reports, summaries of medical records, conduct medical and forensic literature research, and countless more exciting and challenging duties. Consulting comprises a large part of a legal nurse consultant’s job description but legal nurse consultants are also educators. LNCs prepare child protective programs and help educate families about legal issues.
Legal Nurse Consultant Salary
The average salary of a legal nurse in 2004 matched those of nursing administrators and was on average $80,000 per year. Often legal nurse consultants start their own businesses and work independently. They are hired on a case by case basis and often continue to work in the hospital setting as well. These independent legal nurse consultants typically earn approximately $100 to $150 per hour.
American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants
The American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants provides career and collegial support for legal nurse consultant members as well as a nationally recognized certification exam, LNCC. The AALNC conducts national conferences each year where professional legal nurse consultants gather to learn the latest in their field via lectures and meeting with their peers. If legal nurse consulting is the path you choose, joining the AALNC is a must. We wish you the best of luck in your pursuits.
The next step to becoming a certified legal nurse consultant is to request information from the an accredited legal nurse consulting program, such as Kaplan University’s Legal Nurse Consultant Certificate program below.
Featured Legal Nurse Consultant Program
Post University
Post University is accredited by Commission on Institutions of Higher Education (CIHE) of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). This program is enrolling now.
Programs Offered: Certificate | Legal Nurse Consulting (Online)
Click Here to request information from Post University.