Peer Replies (Posts)

POST # 2 ERIKA

State of Utah

Medical malpractice is something that no provider wants to deal with, but it is an unfortunate reality for some. Utah has fewer reported suits and settlements than many other states, but the number of cases has still increased for both advanced practice nurses (APRNs) and physicians over the years. In Utah, advanced practice nurses reported 33 suits and settlements from 1990 to 2014, while physicians reported 2,317 (Joel, 2018). It is likely that physicians reported more malpractice suits than APRNs because there are more physicians than APRNs and physicians tend to take on more complex patient cases. Overall, the number of malpractice suits where APRNs have been named as the primary defendant is low at only 2% (Buppert, 2021).  Malpractice suits can have an unfortunate effect on patients’ access to care. When a clinician is caught up in a legal issue, they may to miss work to attend hearings and to meet with lawyers which takes away time from them seeing patients. Malpractice suits can also lead to stricter regulations on all clinicians-MDs, APRNs, and PAs which can limit where they practice, particularly APRNs and PAs. APRNs often help fill a gap in healthcare in rural settings but having stricter regulations can limit the number of APRNs who want to practice in a rural setting. This is unfortunate as APRNs who practice in rural settings have been shown to provide safe, quality care (Yang et al., 2021).  References Buppert, C. (2021). Nurse Practitioner’s Business Practice and Legal Guide (7th edition). Jones & Bartlett Learning. Joel, L. A. (2018). Advanced practice nursing: Essentials for role development (4th ed). F. A. Davis Company. Yang, B. K., Johantgen, M. E., Trinkoff, A. M., Idzik, S. R., Wince, J., & Tomlinson, C. (2020). State Nurse Practitioner Practice Regulations and US Health Care Delivery Outcomes: A Systematic Review. Medical Care Research and Review, 1077558719901216.