A nurse works full time on the oncology unit at the hospital and works part time on weekends giving immunizations at the local pharmacy. While giving an injection on a weekend, the nurse caused injury to the patient's arm and is now being sued

Question

How will the hospital's malpractice insurance provide coverage for this nurse?
a. It will provide coverage as long as the nurse followed all procedures, protocols, and policies correctly.
b. The hospital's malpractice insurance covers this nurse only during the time the nurse is working at the hospital.
c. As long as the nurse has never been sued before this incident, the hospital's malpractice insurance will cover the nurse.
d. The hospital's malpractice insurance will provide approximately 50% of the coverage the nurse will need.

Answer 1

ANS: B
Malpractice insurance provided by the employing institution covers nurses only while they are working within the scope of their employment. It is always wise to find out if malpractice insurance is provided by a secondary place of employment, in this case, the pharmacy, or the nurse should carry an individual malpractice policy to cover situations such as this. The hospital policy would not provide coverage even if the nurse followed all procedures and policies or had never been sued. It will not provide 50% of coverage.