Nursing
Safe care starts with nursing.
“Medical errors can and do happen, even among skilled, well-meaning, and vigilant nurses and health care professionals.”
“Leaders, regulators and administrators have a responsibility to nurses and patients to put in place and sustain organizational structures that support a just culture, which includes recognizing that mistakes happen and systems fail.”
“Nurses too often find themselves working under conditions that increase the likelihood of adverse outcomes from tragic mistakes.”
Nursing is an essential element of any patient safety improvement effort. Clear communication, documentation, and teamwork all contribute to a safer care environment.
This page provides a starting point for a variety of content related to nursing. Find podcasts, case studies, FAQs, articles and more.
CRICO Covers Nurses & APPs
Learn more
In the wake of medical errors, just cultures are critical
Icing the Patient Safety Movement
Criminal Prosecution is Rare
CRICO’s response to the risk of criminal prosecution of nurses and other health care workers.
CRICO Keeps You Safe
APP Malpractice Cases
Findings showed Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and Physician Assistants (PAs) were rarely involved in the care or event that prompted a claim and were much less likely than physicians (MDs) to be named as defendants in medical professional liability (MPL) cases.
Are APPs at Risk?
Nursing-Related Case Studies
Case Study
Fatal Injuries after Inadequate Wound Treatment and Documentation
Poor documentation and inadequate wound treatment at a skilled nursing facility contributed to an elderly patient’s death.
Related To: Communication, Documentation, EHR, Nursing, Other Specialities
Case Study
Toddler Requires Surgery after Delay in Foreign Body Diagnosis
Miscommunication and failure to follow protocol results in a decomposing button battery being surgically removed from a two-year-old patient’s nose.
Related To: Claims, Communication, Diagnosis, EHR, Emergency Medicine, General Medicine, Nursing
Case Study
Life-altering Misunderstanding During Shift Change
A patient brought to the ED with a subdural hematoma suffered a life-altering injury in the aftermath of a misunderstanding about a blood bank order during a shift change.
Related To: Claims, Communication, Documentation, EHR, Emergency Medicine, Nursing
Case Study
Improper Management and Lack of Communication Causes Significant Post-Surgery Complications
A 60-year-old female suffered long-term injury from the mismanaged complications of a cholecystectomy.
Related To: Claims, Communication, Diagnosis, EHR, Emergency Medicine, Nursing, Surgery
Podcasts related to Nursing
Young Patient, Flawed Test, Fatal Delay in Colon CA Diagnosis
Podcast
Oct 08
Despite multiple visits to her PCP with similar complaints over years, this young patient did not get a timely diagnosis of colon cancer and died. Dr. Carla Ford looks at the testing, communication among providers, and some diagnostic insights for the next patient.
Wrong Site, Quickly Settled
Podcast
Jul 01
Clear liability case from a reversed X-ray was resolved efficiently with insurer/institution cooperation.
Play Episode
Word to the Wise: Misuse of Language in Clinical Communication Causes Harm
Podcast
Nov 23
Misuse of language can have serious clinical consequences. It can also leave patients and families with a bad impression or misunderstandings.
We invited two physicians who authored a JAMA Perspective on the topic to explain what worries them and what doesn't, when it comes to the misuse of words in medicine.
Play Episode
We invited two physicians who authored a JAMA Perspective on the topic to explain what worries them and what doesn't, when it comes to the misuse of words in medicine.
Nov 23
Woman’s Stroke Progressed in ED without Intervention
Podcast
Nov 16
The patient needed to be evaluated by a stroke team and a neurologist promptly to decide whether any treatment was indicated or possible. Triage should be the same whether the ER was empty or overcapacity.
Play Episode
Nov 16