Experienced Nursing Negligence Lawyers in Grand Rapids, Michigan

"Nursing negligence" or "nursing malpractice" occurs when a nurse does not act as a "reasonably prudent" nurse, and a patient is injured. Nursing negligence is a type of medical malpractice and a common cause of malpractice suits. When nursing negligence happens in a hospital, the hospital is usually named as a defendant and hospital negligence claims are raised. Sometimes, nursing malpractice occurs in nursing homes, long-term care facilities, or rehabilitation facilities, and we raise claims of negligence against those facilities.

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Nurses have a difficult job with many different responsibilities. Unfortunately, with a shortage of nurses, many hospitals and other facilities are understaffed. Sometimes, this understaffing results in delays in being provided meals, clothes changed, walks in the hall, etc. Those delays usually amount to "poor customer service," and not malpractice. But sometimes, delays in nursing care results in patient harm - such as when a call light goes unanswered for hours, a patient gets out of bed unassisted to use the bathroom, and falls.

If you or a loved one was injured in the hospital or while a nurse was caring for you, contact our medical malpractice lawyers today for a free consultation.

Read below to learn more about nursing malpractice.

What are common types of nursing malpractice claims?

Nurses have many different responsibilities across many different medical specialties. As a result, there are many types of nursing negligence. Surgical nurses may not keep a correct count of instruments or sponges, and one might accidentally get left in a patient during surgery (we call these "retained foreign object cases"). A nurse might be helping a patient get out of bed, move them wrong and drop them. A nurse might give a shot too high on the arm and cause bursitis. There are all sorts of nursing claims that are specific to medical specialty areas.

Still, there are some general claims that span across specialties. Generally, nurses are responsible for carrying out physician orders, serve as a communication liaison between doctor and patient, communicate lab and imaging results, observe and assess patients (including taking vital signs), administer medicine, and assist patients with tasks the patients cannot do by themselves. A mistake in any one of these broad responsibilities that injures a patient can be nursing malpractice. Our medical malpractice attorneys have experience with many types of nursing negligence.

Here are some common nursing errors:

Medication Errors

Giving the wrong medication or wrong dose
Administering medication to the wrong patient
Failing to monitor for adverse reactions

Patient Falls

Failing to implement fall precautions
Ignoring known fall risks (confusion, weakness, prior falls)
Leaving patients unattended when assistance was required
Improper use of bed alarms, rails, or restraints

Failure to Monitor or Assess

Not performing required vital sign checks
Missing or ignoring changes in condition
Delayed recognition of stroke, sepsis, respiratory distress, or bleeding
Failure to escalate concerns to a physician or supervisor

Failure to Prevent Pressure Ulcers

Failing to reposition immobile patients
Failing to conduct timely skin assessments
Ignoring or failing to treat early-stage pressure injuries

Inadequate Hygiene or Basic Care

Failing to timely assist with toileting
Leaving patients in soiled clothing or bedding leading to pressure sores or infections
Failing to provide adequate nutrition or fluids

Failure to Communicate

Failing to notify a physician of important changes in patient status
Poor communication with on-coming nurse during handoff / shift change
Inaccurate or incomplete charting
Failure to follow or clarify medical orders

Failure to Follow Protocols or Care Plans

Ignoring physician orders
Not following facility policies or standard nursing protocols
Improper use of medical equipment
Acting outside the nurse's scope of practice

Negligent Supervision or Staffing Issues

Inadequate staffing ratios leading to missed care
Assigning patients beyond a nurse's competency
Failure to properly supervise aides or CNAs.

Nursing negligence can be one major error or it can be the result of ongoing missed basics, such as failing to recognize warning signs that a patient is going downhill and needs immediate physician help.

Who is responsible for Nursing Negligence?

Nurses do not typically carry their own malpractice insurance. Instead, the hospital, nursing home, or other facility where they work generally carries the nurse on their insurance. In Michigan (and most states), employers are responsible for the errors that their employees make while working. It is called "respondeat superior" or "actual agency."

There is a new trend to hire private nurses for surgical recovery or elder care. This can be a great service that gives help to families when they need it most. But private nurses can also make mistakes. You should always be sure that the nurse you are hiring carries malpractice insurance.

How does a Nursing Malpractice Lawsuit Work?

Nursing home negligence is generally a type of medical malpractice, so a nursing malpractice case proceeds in the same way as other medical malpractice lawsuits (when the nursing negligence happened during labor and delivery, we refer to the case as a birth injury lawsuit). On rare occasions, the nursing mistake is so bad that the claim does not require expert testimony on the applicable standard of care (i.e., to tell the jury what a reasonable nurse would have done under the circumstances). Those cases are "general negligence" cases.

Medical malpractice cases begin first your first phone call to Hoffer & Sheremet. You don't need an appointment. Just call 616.278.0888. You don't even need to know what to say! We know exactly the questions to ask to get the information we need. Then, we pass that information on to our attorneys. From there, we might schedule a meeting with an attorney. If we think we can help, we will review your medical records. If we think there may be a case that should be pursued, we obtain expert opinions on both standard of care and causation. If we have expert support, we issue either a demand or a Notice of Intent. After the mandatory waiting period, we file the lawsuit. It is a slow process, but we get you the damages to which you are entitled.

For a detailed explanation of medical malpractice cases, read Medical Malpractice 101.

How much are nursing negligence settlements?

Every case is different! Generally, the amount of a settlement depends on how bad the nursing error was, how bad the injury was, whether the patient healed, how much was lost in economic damages, and how directly the error caused the injury. Non-economic damages, which are for pain and suffering, scarring, and the like, are capped in Michigan.

Nursing Negligence FAQs

How can nurses fail to follow orders?

Doctors and hospitals have both standard orders and patient-specific orders. Some common orders are turning patients every two hours (to prevent bed sores), obtaining blood gases repeatedly to monitor pH and avoid hypoxia, or starting oxygen through nasal canula if O2 saturations drop below a certain percent. Nurses must follow these orders, or if the nurse believes the order is incorrect, he or she must "go up the chain of command" and challenge the order. A nurse cannot choose to ignore or disobey an order.

Some examples of nursing negligence cases that arise from failing to follow orders include: failing to turn patients causing pressure ulcers, administering the wrong medication, failing to administer medication, failing to monitor vital signs frequently, failing to timely obtain imaging studies like CTs or x-rays.

How can nurses fail to communicate?

Nurses are responsible for keeping doctors aware of a patient's condition. Nurses continually check on their patients, and if there is a change in the patient for the worse, the nurse should make sure the physician is aware of the change. It is the nurse's responsibility to accurately assess the patient and appropriately determine how serious the change is. Nurses also generally communicate test results, like lab values and imaging reports, to physicians.

Any delay in communication or a mistake in determining the severity of a change in symptoms can lead to patient injury and could be nursing malpractice.

How can nurses fail to monitor or assess?

Nurses need to pay attention to their patients, and the devil is in the details when it comes to patient safety. Changes in vital signs, increased pain, weakness, dizziness, trouble urinating...the possible changes in symptoms are almost endless. And a nurse cannot solely rely on their patient to tell them about symptoms changes. Nurses must not only talk with patients, but also use their eyes, ears and hands to properly assess. Improper assessment - either missing symptoms or not realizing the significance of symptoms - can lead to a failure to timely communicate with a physician. Patients can have a complication that goes undetected and untreated, resulting in injury.

How can nurses fail to assist?

Nurses are responsible for assisting their patients to do what the patients cannot do for themselves. This, of course, requires a nurse to either properly assess a patient first or to follow assistance orders put in place by a doctor or hospital.

One of the most common and easily avoidable events is patient falls. Many times, patients need assistance standing or walking. Those patients are considered a "fall risk," and need assistance to walk. This could be for many reasons, such as weakness, medication, or dizziness. Nurses are responsible for accurately assessing a patient's fall risk,developing a reasonable plan to minimize the risk, and executing that plan. The failure to do any of those things properly can lead to patient injury.

Can nurses make errors in procedure and execution?

I think I have a nursing negligence case.

If a nurse made a mistake, and you or a loved one were harmed as a result, contact our medical malpractice attorneys for a free consultation and we can review the basis of your medical malpractice claim. You may call us for a free consultation without an appointment at 616.278.0888. We can also be reached via email at info@hoffersheremet.com, or by filling out our free consultation form below.

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Or call us at 616.278.0888. No appointment is necessary for an initial phone consultation.

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