As a nurse manager, if approached by a nurse who receives a complaint, you should direct the nurse to take the complaint to the risk manager. The risk manager sends the complaint to the hospital's liability insurance carrier, which assigns the case to a law firm specializing in professional negligence actions. The attorney prepares an answer to the complaint on behalf of the nurse. Advise nurses named in a lawsuit not to discuss the case with other nurses. If the nurse manager is named as a defendant, he shouldn't discuss the case except in the presence of, or at the instruction of, his attorney.
Emotions run high during a negligence lawsuit.
Nurses feel anger, disappointment, reflection, guilt, and blame when their judgment is challenged and the courts scrutinize their care. It's often difficult for them not to discuss the case. The damage this can cause, however, comes out months later during the discovery phase. In depositions, everything a nurse discusses out of the presence of her assigned attorney is fully discoverable. The plaintiff's attorney will ask with whom the nurse spoke about the case and what was said.