Get to Know Med Law’s Manager of Clinical Operations: LeAnne Smith
At Med Law Advisory Partners, our medical-legal team is composed of highly experienced medical consultants and dedicated support staff from a variety of backgrounds. Each team member brings years of consulting expertise along with vast clinical experience in the areas of acute/critical care, long-term care, health systems management and more.
Introducing LeAnne Smith. Since joining Med Law Advisory Partners 14 years ago, she has provided specialized medical-legal services related to medical malpractice, long-term care, personal injury, insurance underwriting and opioid investigations. LeAnne was also recently promoted to manager of Clinical Operations.
What is your role at Med Law Advisory Partners?
In my role as Manager of Clinical Operations, I oversee all clinical and administrative operations of the company. Working alongside the CEO, I ensure smooth client onboarding and ongoing customer relations.
What did you do before working for Med Law Advisory Partners?
My clinical expertise is in intensive care, dialysis and home health care nursing.
Why do you do this type of work? Do you have a specific area of expertise that you are the most fond of?
I first started legal nurse consulting because it was an opportunity for me to work from home while my children were small. I really didn’t know much about this line of work and began my career in this field by doing research. I then branched out into medical records reviews. Once I got into it, I fell in love with the investigation and analysis of medical care. I wanted to learn everything I could about the subject. I discovered I had an affinity for this type of work because I was very detail-oriented. I learned everything I could about all different types of consulting. In the end, I think my biggest passion is long-term care litigation.
In your opinion, what is the most rewarding aspect of your job?
The most rewarding aspect of my job is twofold. On a personal level, it gives me the opportunity to work from home and to have more time to devote to my family. On a professional level, I take great pride in my ability to break down a medical record and show clear evidence of care or lack thereof, to assist the legal team in finding the truth of a matter. Overall, it is rewarding to feel like I made a difference in a particular case, but also that my work might make a difference on a larger scale, by impacting future decisions regarding the delivery of healthcare.
Tell us about a time you had to overcome a challenge or obstacle as a legal nurse consultant – how did you overcome this/what did you learn?
I feel like the biggest challenge I have had to overcome was simply having to learn how to locate expert witnesses. I was able to turn to one of my peers at Med Law for help and overcome the learning curve. I know that legal nurse consulting supports so many different aspects of medical-legal work and no one can be an expert in all areas. I learned it’s okay to look to others for help when you need it.
What is something in the healthcare industry that comes to mind that you would like to see improved or changed?
I feel like one of the biggest areas of improvement needed is in the delivery of quality healthcare to our elderly population.
What are you most likely up to when you are off-the-clock?
Spending time with my family outdoors. We enjoy boating and riding UTVs.
What is some advice you would give to nurses looking to pursue a career in legal nurse consulting?
If you are considering a future in legal nurse consulting, I would recommend you have a candid conversation with an LNCC who has experience in the field. Take the time to really understand what this job entails and the kind of personal characteristics it takes to do the job effectively because this job is not for everyone.
Interesting fact about yourself:
I enjoy cattle farming, and I love football!