Insurance is a form of risk protection that people secure for all aspects of their lives—including their professional lives. It’s not everyone’s first instinct to seek professional liability insurance, though it works in risky situations. Doctors, small business owners, and even insurance agents themselves should all have an errors and omissions policy that covers their assets if they make a mistake while providing their services. These are the reasons why E&O insurance is important.
Mistakes Are Inevitable
We’re all prone to make a mistake or two in our professional line of work. A surgeon’s hand could slip during surgery and cause a damaging complication. A shop owner could forget to display slippery floor signage and receive a hefty lawsuit. An insurance adjuster could absentmindedly forget to render their complete services to a client who then takes them to court. The fact is that anyone could make an error in their business practice that leads to legal consequences. Errors and omissions insurance protects your career or business from irreparable financial or legal harm.
Lawsuits Are Expensive
Battling angry clients in court is expensive. Lawyer fees, court costs, and administrative bills add up—and that doesn’t even include the possible payout if you lose the case. Insurance is the most affordable route to go. An insurance company will cover these costs to varying degrees depending on your insurance type. Don’t leave yourself without support when facing financial ruin and legal agony; find an insurance policy that will cover your needs before something catastrophic occurs.
Careers Are Precious
Your professional career needs careful development and nurturing to grow and flourish; a career is vital to living a complete and whole life. Your professional life is precious to you, and you don’t want a misunderstanding with a customer or a lapse in attention to ruin your years-long effort. Errors and omissions insurance is the only surefire way to protect your career from ruinous consequences.
Knowing the reasons why E&O insurance is important can help you make the most of your career. For example, if you work in insurance, you should obtain an insurance agent’s errors and omissions insurance policy to protect your professional life for years to come. Have any more questions about E&O? Reach out to our team at Baxter & Associates today and speak with one of our insurance professionals today.
Working as a physician assistant requires years of schooling and dedication. You are constantly working to further your professional career, possibly culminating in your own practice. But every medical professional needs to protect themselves. Here are the best tips for choosing physician assistant liability insurance.
Figure Out Your Location
When you finish medical training and look for your first job, you will need insurance to be a practicing PA. Find insurance for the location and state you plan to practice in, especially if you want to travel outside your current state. You may not know where you’ll be practicing until you have a job offer, so start researching insurance options ahead of time in the places you apply.
If you are an established PA and need new liability insurance for a new job or a relocation, you should also plan for where you are heading. The more you know about the local insurance options, the smoother your career transition will be.
Narrow Your Search by Specialty
Physician assistants may share a title and foundational education, but there are dozens of specialties within the medical field. These specializations will alter the levels of risk involved with your work and change the kind of insurance you need. For example, a dermatology PA who works with skin issues will perform vastly different tasks than a general surgery PA.
Connect With Local Medical Networks
Organizations, associations, clubs, and more—every locality has its own medical networks, even if they are quite small. Connect with the people who live and work in your area to understand the insurance landscape better. There may be discounts or coverage differences that only an insider will know, so put yourself out there and meet people who can give you the inside scoop.
Use these tips for choosing physician assistant liability insurance as you navigate your career. If you need a high-quality physician assistant medical malpractice insurance policy, contact our team at Baxter & Associates.
It can be challenging to figure out how to grow in your field, but you came to the right place. Whether it’s looking for further certifications or getting involved with a professional organization, we have all the best tips for advancing your nurse practitioner career. Take the next step and increase your ability to help your patients!
Focus on Education
More opportunities present themselves if you have more credentials to prove your abilities. Perhaps you are in school or working in a hospital; no matter what stage of the process you are in, consider taking online extension courses to expand your knowledge. Specific certifications will also help if you want to work in a particular nurse practitioner field, like family practice, psychiatry, dermatology or pediatrics.
Aside from how this continued education looks on a resumé, it also keeps you updated in the ever-changing world of medicine. Stay on top of new information and make sure you are always using best practices. If you are the only person who knows a newly implemented technique, people will take notice.
Many of these courses and certifications will come with a price tag, and you should be conscious of that. Investing in your education is one thing, but ensure you watch your wallet. You can advance your career without going into debt.
Join a Professional Organization
Nurse Practitioner organizations work as a form of networking, in which you can connect with other nurse practitioner who have similar interests and specialties. You can form lasting bonds with these colleagues and help each other professionally. An organization like this could furthermore provide you with discounts on certain educational courses, allowing you to grow more while saving money.
Joining a professional nurse practitioner organization can also grant you access to experts you ordinarily would not get. The opportunity to network with leaders in your field can be an invaluable asset for furthering your career goals. Reach out and speak with anyone who you look up to. If they are interested, one of those leaders could even become your mentor and assist you more personally.
There are many types of nurse practitioner organizations; get involved with one that matches your specific occupational dreams. You might even find yourself drawn to leadership in the organization itself, which can turn into a platform for influencing policy. If you think something could be done better, don’t be afraid to speak up. Leading the charge on an issue that changes the game can only be a good thing.
Find a Mentor
Finding the right person to mentor you can be a real challenge, and it’s not something that can come about without significant time spent in the field. Remember, a good mentor-mentee relationship goes both ways. Once you’ve found that person with whom you share rapport, let them guide you through your training and to the next level. They’ve made it, and so can you.
Remember to talk to your mentor about the highs and lows of whichever field you’re interested in— once your relationship is established, of course. A mentor with significant experience will know why the job is great and why it is challenging. You can prepare yourself for the hurdles ahead by having candid conversations with your mentor.
Networking Is Key
Networking extends beyond joining a nurse practitioner organization or finding a mentor, although those are significant first steps. Networking events are a sure way to find other people in your field who are as motivated as you are. Conferences are another opportunity for you to hear from experts and meet new people, and you can find them in any major city.
Don’t overthink networking, either. It may sound like a complex task or a scary word, but it can be as simple as giving a new colleague your contact information. It’s all about building a group of people you can go to with ideas or questions about the world of healthcare.
Ensure You’re Insured
When you’re working to get established as a professional nurse practitioner, the last thing you need is a malpractice lawsuit. Through no fault of your own, you can find yourself involved in a malpractice suit, and that can seriously impact your career and your life. More and more, nurse practitioners are being pulled into these lawsuits whether or not they hold any responsibility in the case.
Many nurse practitioners don’t realize their employer’s insurance plan includes gaps in coverage. If your malpractice case falls into one of these gaps, your employer could refuse to cover you. Consider acquiring a malpractice insurance plan for nurse practitioners. to ensure you’re covered and avoid unnecessary hindrances to your career. Family members of your patients can easily misplace their frustrations, so there is no shame in protecting yourself, just in case.
Time Management
There is so much that goes into being a great nurse practitioner that you might find yourself feeling overwhelmed. This is nothing to be ashamed of, and it is entirely fixable. Make sure you are allowing for a healthy work/life balance to avoid the possibility of burnout. With online courses, networking, and staying involved in your organization, you might find it difficult to take time to breathe.
Finding that time is crucial. Take your breaks throughout the day and leave the work at work. You know better than anyone that tensions can run high in hospital settings. The family members of your patient are coping with intense stress, and it can be easy to forget you are a human being, too. In those moments, practice controlled breathing and remind yourself their anger is not personal.
You can’t take care of your patients if you aren’t taking care of yourself. Proper sleeping and eating habits are a priority, and you might want to give therapy some serious thought. Stress can easily build to a breaking point in this field, so be aware of that and take steps to avoid it. Healthcare, more than almost any other career, requires both personal and professional competency to be effective.
There are so many tips for advancing your nurse practitioner career, but they are all critically important. Use your time wisely, and you can take yourself anywhere. Just remember to better yourself first, and the career advancements will follow.
