What Is Professional Indemnity Insurance In Nursing?

Professional Indemnity Insurance

Professional indemnity insurance is an insurance policy that is designed to protect you, as a licensed professional, against legal costs and any compensation claims that will be made by those whom you’ve served or interacted with.

Professional indemnity insurance is a requirement for all nurses in Australia to meet the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) registration standard. This insurance is also a requirement to practise a nursing profession.

Why Do Nurses Need Indemnity Insurance?

Nurses need professional indemnity insurance because the nursing industry features a diverse mix of working situations.

Regardless of where the nursing care takes place, there’s a strong possibility of making an error. These errors include:

  • Failing to carry out instructions on the proper care for a patient
  • Making an error in judgement due to being overworked
  • Administering medications that are not for the patient
  • Being wrongfully accused of unprofessional conduct
  • A level of negligence when performing duties
  • Giving incorrect diagnosis or prescription to a patient

Professional indemnity insurance (PII) is designed to protect you in the event where you make a mistake and are sued.

How Much Does Nursing Insurance Cost?

The cost of nursing liability insurance highly depends on the coverage. Nurse insurance is affordable and accessible to all who are practising this profession. Most insurance policies cost less than a hundred per year. However, these rates will vary based on your location and the overall coverage.

Professional Indemnity Coverage Details

Professional indemnity insurance can cover you for human errors, professional negligence, unintentional breaches of privacy and confidentiality, as well as accidental loss of documents or data. Professional indemnity insurance can cover a broad range of potential risks.

It will usually take into account the financial loss that the client has suffered due to a mistake done by a professional.

So professional indemnity insurance can cover compensation payments and legal fees if a business gets sued by their client for a mistake they’ve made in their work.

The compensation payment will usually take into account the financial loss that the client has suffered.

Does Professional Indemnity Insurance Cover Bodily Injury?

Professional indemnity insurance can cover third party compensation for bodily injury, only if the said injury is caused by your error in performing your professional duties.

Professional indemnity insurance covers financial loss, personal injury and property damage resulting from your errors or omission while you’re working for a client.

Does Professional Indemnity Insurance Cover Consequential Loss?

Looking deep into the concept of professional indemnity insurance, a consequential loss is a form of financial loss suffered by your client that’s indirectly due to human error or professional negligence.

Consequential loss is sometimes covered under professional indemnity insurance, although you should check your policy documents to see if it is truly covered.

Even if your professional indemnity insurance does cover general consequential loss, there will usually be some exclusions. These exclusions need to be recognized during your consultation or when you read the policy for your awareness and also to make an informed decision.

Steffy Alen

Steffy Alen