Denver Post Interviews Vickie About New Career Opportunities for Nurses
In an October 2005 article about new career opportunities for RNs, the Denver Post featured legal nurse consulting as a career alternative for nurses desiring to get out of hospital nursing, but wanting to continue to use their nursing expertise. According to the article, "Medical Trends, Training Reviving Nurses," there are numerous new opportunities for nurses that span the legal arena, insurance and technology companies and other non-hospital settings.
“Healthcare is expanding and doing a lot more out of the hospital,” said Paula M. Stearns, RN, MSN, executive director of the Colorado Nurses Association. "There are so many opportunities. Nursing knowledge really is valued in a lot of different places." Continued education, however, is the key to making the change.
Vickie L. Milazzo, RN, MSN, JD, the pioneer of legal nurse consulting, explained the advantage offered by Vickie Milazzo Institute in legal nurse consulting training, "We teach nurses how to apply their experience to what the lawyers need,” she said. "Every case is different and unique."
The article states that nurses can earn up to $150 an hour helping attorneys interpret medical records and prepare reports for malpractice or injury-related cases. Some nurses testify in court. RNs in a hospital setting earn an average of $27.78 an hour according to Colorado labor data.
According to the American Bar Association Market Research Department, there are 1,104,766 practicing attorneys in the U.S., and according to the Houston Chronicle, 25% handle medical-related cases.
Hang Where Attorneys Hang
by Vickie L. Milazzo, RN, MSN, JD
Think of ONE place lawyers are guaranteed to hang out. The courthouse. So schedule regular trips to the courthouse and spend a few minutes or a few hours. It's free.
"If you hang around a courthouse long enough, someone's going to ask who you are and what you want. You'll meet so many interesting people, mostly attorneys, and if you talk to them, you'll end up with work."
– Linda Hennrich, RN, CLNC, Missouri
Attend a Trial
You'll enjoy a free educational experience while homing in on prospects. Write down the attorneys' names – both plaintiff and defense. After the trial concludes, send a handwritten note of congratulations to the winning attorney on your CLNC® note card. A few days later, call that attorney. Be warm and repeat your sincere congratulations. Then quickly educate the attorney to the ways you can help him win future cases.
To identify relevant trials:
Go to the courthouse and pick up a schedule for trials going on that day.
Tune in on highly publicized trials that might have something to teach you as you listen to the news and read the newspaper.
Ask your attorney-clients to advise you of trials in which other prominent lawyers are involved.
Pick the winners. Select an attorney-prospect you really want to work with and attend a trial to watch that attorney in action. Follow up with a phone call or note to say how impressed you were with their trial strategy.
Witness a Trial for a Case You've Consulted On
As a consulting expert or testifying expert, you are typically involved in only one portion of the litigation process. By watching a trial from start to finish you can observe what lawyers (both your attorney-client and the opposing lawyer) do with your testimony or the information you provided in your case report. Seeing the big picture will broaden your vision and help you understand the legal process and adversarial system. The more you know about that foreign and mysterious world, the less you will be intimidated by it. Most importantly, you will become a better consultant or expert. A stronger work product is the best marketing strategy of all.
Vickie L. Milazzo, RN, MSN, JD is the founder and president of Vickie Milazzo Institute. She is credited by The New York Times with creating the legal nurse consulting profession in 1982. Inc. named her to the 2004 Top Ten Entrepreneur list. She is the recipient of the Nursing Excellence Award for Advancing the Profession and the Stevie Award (business's Oscar®) as Mentor of the Year. Vickie has revolutionized the careers of thousands of RNs. She is the author of Inside Every Woman: Using the 10 Strengths You Didn't Know You Had to Get the Career and Life You Want Now, coming March 2006 from John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Preorder this anticipated best seller now at www.Amazon.com.
What Lawyers Look for in Their Consulting Experts and Testifying Experts
by Vickie L. Milazzo, RN, MSN, JD
We interviewed trial lawyers at a legal convention. Their favorite way to locate experts and consultants is through other attorneys who have worked with them successfully. The top five things they look for in their consultants and experts are:
Strong credentials
Knowledge, skill and experience
Credibility
Honesty
Someone who makes a good impression and is appealing to the jury
In addition, the attorneys interviewed look for someone who is:
Objective
Easy to work with
Conservative, ie., doesn't give opinions that are insupportable
A good listener
Flexible and open-minded
A good educator and communicator
Known for their excellent reputation
Published on the topic
So there you have it – straight from the attorneys' mouths.
Vickie L. Milazzo, RN, MSN, JD is the founder and president of Vickie Milazzo Institute. She is credited by The New York Times with creating the legal nurse consulting profession in 1982. Inc. named her to the 2004 Top Ten Entrepreneur list. She is the recipient of the Nursing Excellence Award for Advancing the Profession and the Stevie Award (business's Oscar®) as Mentor of the Year. Vickie has revolutionized the careers of thousands of RNs. She is the author of Inside Every Woman: Using the 10 Strengths You Didn't Know You Had to Get the Career and Life You Want Now, coming March 2006 from John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Preorder this anticipated best seller now at www.Amazon.com.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Thanks to Carolyn Miller, RN, CLNC for sharing her thoughts about the Contracts! Contracts! Contracts! CD and the CLNC® 6-Day Certification Seminar.
I just opened my Contracts! Contracts! Contracts! CD on my computer and would like to say how impressed I am with this invaluable tool that I received with my VIP CLNC® Success System. I cannot believe how much thought and work must have gone into this outstanding CD. In my opinion, this is a "must-have" for any and all CLNC®s. You have saved me and all who use it hundreds of hours (and money) on what I perceived to be the rather daunting task of creating contracts.
The Vickie Milazzo Institute CLNC® 6-Day Certification Seminar is THE most professional and educational experience in which I have ever had the pleasure of participating. You leave no stone unturned. I have not found even ONE typo in anything that I've read and, let's face it, there's a great deal of reading material! Thank you for turning my life around. I have not been this excited about ANYTHING in a long, long time. Many thanks!
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