A legal nurse consultant must be a licensed registered nurse and complete a legal nurse consulting course. These courses can be found online and also offered by technical institutes. Paralegal training does not apply because it does not involve training in health care. Registered nurses graduating from this course do not need to take the legal nurse consultant exam and become certified in order to practice as legal nurse consultants. Becoming certified is an additional step, requiring hours of practicum, but it could lead to higher pay.
To be eligible to take the legal nurse consultant certified (LNCC) exam, you must be licensed as a registered nurse, have five years experience practicing as a registered nurse and provide evidence of 2,000 hours of legal nurse consulting experience within the past three years. More information is available from the American Legal Nurse Consultant Certification Board (ALNCCB).
Several organizations offer the legal nurse consultant course in class or online. A typical course offered by The Center for Legal Studies (CLS), for example, consists of one class including 42 hours of instruction. Students are required to prepare assignments and pass weekly quizzes. Successful graduates also will receive a certificate for 42 contact hours of continuing nursing education, which can be used to fulfill continuing education requirements.
According to AllNursingSchools.com, LNC courses include reviewing medical records, medical and legal research, applying standards of care, searching for medical and nursing issues relevant to a case, educating attorneys and paralegals, investigation, trial preparation and writing summaries. CLS courses include subjects such as medical malpractice, toxic torts, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, criminal law and workers' compensation. An LNC may serve as an expert witness.
An employer may require LNC certification and may prefer a graduate degree in nursing. Besides attorneys, organizations that seek LNCs include insurance companies, health care facilities, government agencies and private corporations. An employer may seek an LNCC with skills in discovery, investigation or risk management. Cases range from disability claims to Medicaid and Medicare fraud to professional misconduct.
For cases that go to trial, legal nurse consultants may be required to prepare exhibits, medical fact reports and summaries, chronologies of medical events and other evidence. They may also draft questions for attorneys to use during medical depositions, interview parties involved in a case and prepare witnesses for trial.