Author: Brighton College
Program Chair of Health and Law Departments and Faculty
We are excited to introduce Dr. James Wheeler who’s role at Brighton College is to serve as Program Chair for Health and Law Departments and Faculty.
Please take a moment to get some insight from Dr. Wheeler by learning more about his view on some key topics:
What is your role at Brighton College? Teaching courses in the Legal Nurse Consulting diploma program, and a course in Medical Law & Ethics. I am Program Chair for Health & Law, since I am a physician and an attorney and have provided medicolegal consulting services over a broad range of topics for 29 years. I also see myself responsible for bringing a ray of sunshine (i.e. the occasional laugh) to my colleagues who work so hard in administration – especially Rene’, Sean and Sam!
What part of your role at Brighton College do you like best? I love watching students get that “aha” moment when the little light bulb goes off above their developing intellects.
Have you taken any online courses? I have taken multiple online courses over 30 years, in chronological order: real estate, mortgages, construction management, insurance (certificates in five lines of insurance) securities (earned Series 6 and 63 licenses), and Brighton College/The Paralegal Institute’s Legal Nurse Consultant diploma. I probably should have developed better hobbies…but I do collect centuries-old books in medicine, law and the humanities, and antique games with my children.
What is some advice you would give students attending Brighton College? “Find your nearest Starbucks…” Just kidding ! Need to be careful with caffeine! But seriously, online learning is all about an individual learning how to manage their time and effort, as well as their mental acuity and ingestion of information.
Share one of your favorite benefits of Attending Brighton College? I am an old guy, with two doctorates, a master’s, two bachelor’s, and 11 online certificates – I assure you, I know what quality education looks like. I chose BC/TPI for its quality, its cost-value, its faculty, and its uber-kind staff and administration. Seriously, I got more emails from my Student Services rep during my LNC program than half my children!
We are fortunate to have Dr. Wheeler in the role of our Program Chair for Health and Law Departments and Faculty. His strong education background includes:
Juris Doctor, University of Houston Law Center; Bachelors of Arts in Biology/Social Relations, Harvard College
- MD, Baylor College of Medicine
- MPH, Yale University Schools of Medicine and Public Health
- Legal Nurse Consultant Diploma, Brighton College/The Paralegal Institute
- Advanced Mediation Training, American Health Lawyers Association
Again, please join us in welcoming Dr. Wheeler!
Social Networks Legal Nurse Consultants Need to Use
Which social networks do you need to use? I still run into LNCs who are not using social media at all. Without social media you will remain a best kept secret.
What can you do as a legal nurse consultant to stand out on social media? These are commonly used social networks and tips for using each.
The best business social network: LinkedIn
Often thought of as a professional version of Facebook, LinkedIn has a lot of potential for anyone who is trying to build a brand. If you really want your legal nurse consulting business to stand out, start making more connections on LinkedIn. This is one social network you must use, even if you don’t use others.
Here are a few best practices to work into your LinkedIn social media plan.
- Profile– LinkedIn has a huge profile component. In order to stand out here, fill in every blank space that you possibly can. This includes an introductory video, a great professional headshot, as well as referrals, and testimonials from your attorney clients.
- Publish– LinkedIn allows you to publish legal nurse consulting articles that will potentially get a high amount of viewers, even outside of your connections. This is because all of the second tier connections (your connections’ connections) can see the content you publish. Make your content unique, timely, and relevant. They’ll even give you writing ideas once you click “write an article” under your profile header.
- Connect– It is tempting to connect to anyone and everyone on LinkedIn. However, like most social media platforms, it’s best to connect with only the relevant people you know. Start with the friends you already have and build your connections over time. You can narrow down the relevancy even more according to your needs. Use your connections to get introductions to attorneys.
- Engage– LinkedIn has many groups that probably relate to your business, niche, and topics. I run Legal Nurse Consulting Marketing. Join my group. Make a commitment to engage with your connections on a regular basis. Contributing awesome information and content will attract the audience to you want.
Complete your profile and keep it updated. Reach out to others – you’ll stand out. So many people are relying on automation now that when someone gets real and personal they’ll automatically make an impression.
Want a social media checklist to guide you? Fill in the fields and we’ll email you one.
Facebook can be quite amazing. You’ll find your clients on Facebook. According to statista.com, on a monthly basis there are over 1.71 billion active users on Facebook. The best way to stand out on Facebook is to encourage interaction in a variety of ways. Your Facebook friends will applaud you when you share with them.
- Images– Every now and then Facebook changes its image sizes. Keep up to date on the best sizes to use so that they are more appealing and sharable. Use images in updates to help your audience find you in the sea of information in their news feeds. Use well-made, branded, attention-grabbing images to help promote your topics and updates.
- Content– The content you share on Facebook should lead readers to take some type of action, whether it’s going your website, blog, or getting them to sign up for your email list. Plan the purpose or a call to action for all content before you share it. Don’t share anything that is unrelated or uninteresting to your readers.
- Engagement– Don’t blindly share content. Most Facebook users are not there to buy. Generally, they dislike advertisements and people who promote too much. Engage with users on Facebook for maximum impact.
- Promote– You can’t just leave things to chance on Facebook. If you have something important to share with your audience, use the tools available to promote it. You can promote a post, run an advertising campaign, and share items more than once.
Facebook is the place to be if you want to increase the size of your loyal audience base. Answer questions on other people’s groups, be a resource, and “go live” with important information for your audience a couple of times a week.
Twitter has over 313 million active monthly users (statista.com) so in all probability your audience is on Twitter. I find that most attorneys use LinkedIn for business purposes, Facebook for social purposes and Twitter to promote themselves. If you want to go beyond using appropriate #hashtags, here are some best practices and important tips to help you stand out on Twitter.
- Repeat Your Tweets– More than any other social network, repeating Tweets is an essential component of ensuring that your ideas are seen, commented on, and shared. While other networks frown on this practice, Twitter encourages it. Try sharing a slightly different tweet about the same info two or three times a day. Be sure you space each “repeated tweet/link” several hours apart to get the most engagement.
- Don’t Forget the Weekend– Weekends are a good time to interact with Twitter users. Some people may not have time to deal with social media during the week. Try sending tweets on weekends. Use what you know about the habits of your target market as well as analytics to find out when your audience engages on Twitter. You might be surprised at how much more you’ll stand out from the others who aren’t doing it.
- Use Images– Tweets that share images get more retweets and comments than those without. Be sure to brand your image with your logo. Let the image speak for itself with a small blurb on the image.
- Promote– On Twitter, you want to promote your important Tweets to get more bang for your time. When you know you want your audience to perform a specific action from the Tweet, that’s a good time to promote it.
Twitter has a lot of promise when it comes to social media promotions. You can use Twitter ads, Twitter pics, and even video to stand out from the crowd. Avoid too much automation and focus on interaction, especially on Twitter. Take advantage of the fast pace and tweet in the moment.
These social networks are places to start. Pick one, master it and then add another. Your goal of connecting with clients will be met if you interact, share, comment and post.
Provided by: http://legalnursebusiness.com/43901/social-networks-legal-nurse-consultants-need-to-use/
Welcome Dr. Jim Wheeler
We are pleased to announce that Dr. Jim Wheeler, who serves as Professor of Medicine, Law, & Nursing, and Program Chair in Health & Law. Jim’s background is diverse, having completed multiple programs at traditional brick-and-mortar schools as well as online virtual education programs. He graduated Harvard College with a dual degree in Biology and Psychology, then Baylor College of Medicine. His residency at Baylor was in Obstetrics/Gynecology, followed by a fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology at Yale. While at Yale, he also completed the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars program in clinical epidemiology and health care policy, and earned a Master’s degree in Biostatistics and Maternal/Child Health. Jim served on the faculties of Yale, then Baylor, after his medical training was complete, then moved into private practice 20 years ago. Jim then earned his J.D. from University of Houston Law Center, and has served as a medicolegal consultant for 28 years, having participated in hundreds of case reviews, formal opinions, and testifying.
Dr. Wheeler has participated in online educational programs in real estate, insurance, securities, construction management, medical billing/coding – and completed in December 2016 – the Legal Nurse Consultant diploma program at Brighton College/The Paralegal Institute.
“Dr. Wheeler has written dozens of articles and has given dozens of invited lectures. Jim is a perpetual student, and enthusiastic instructor, and has enjoyed, very much, these first few weeks with the students, faculty, and staff of Brighton College/The Paralegal Institute”, says Rene’ Folse Nasluchacz, Vice President of Academic Affairs. We look forward to him contributing to the growth and development of the entire Brighton College/Paralegal Institute community, and he appreciates this wonderful opportunity to work with us all.
3 Ways a Legal Nurse Consultant Can Increase A Successful Case Outcome
Many attorneys out there are quite aware of the value of a Registered Nurse evaluating their cases. Any case an attorney is working with that deals with medical issues should be evaluated by a medical professional. These types of cases include medical malpractice cases, personal injury, workers’ compensation, criminal, product liability, and even social security.
There are three top reasons to utilize a Legal Nurses Consultant on your cases involving medical issues:
- Screening Cases – The Legal Nurse Consultant will very thoroughly and succinctly evaluate the medicals on these cases and provide the attorney with the specific details of the case, the related standard of care issues and the strengths and weakness of the case.
- Expert Location – The Legal Nurse Consultant is also an excellent resource for obtaining that “perfect” expert witness for your case. Although it may seem obvious as to what expert is required for the case, there may be an expert that would be an even “better fit.” For example, if there is an issue revolving around EMS and the emergency department, an MD that is an emergency department provider, but is also the Director of an EMS system may be a “better fit” for the case.
- Medical Literature Resource – The Legal Nurse Consultant has been involved in medical research his/her whole nursing career. As Legal Nurse Consultants, we have honed in on the specific techniques of research to quickly obtain detailed medical information. Not only are we skilled in obtaining the needed medical literature, we have the database resources many attorneys do not have.
What Are The eLearning Benefits For Busy Adult Learners?
With ever-growing to-do lists and schedules that seem to be filling by the minute, many adult learners, who would otherwise like to further their education, are finding that they simply don’t have the time to attend traditional classes. However, eLearning gives the chance to busy adult learners to earn degrees, to improve on-the-job performance, and to develop skills that will help them achieve their personal and professional goals. So, if you are a busy adult learner you may need to consider these eLearning benefits and continue further with your education. On the other hand, if you’re an eLearning professional developing an eLearning course for adult learners, you may want to keep them in mind to ensure that your eLearning deliverable is offering all of the perks mentioned here.
- Improves your knowledge retention.
Every learner, regardless of age or educational background, can benefit from a personalized eLearning experience. It gives them the ability to learn at their own pace and on their own terms, which boosts knowledge absorption and retention. They can choose when to move onto the next module, rather than moving along with the pace of their peers. If a busy adult learner feels rushed during an eLearning course, then he/she is less likely to actually acquire the new information offered. On the other hand, if learners are able to learn in the moments when it’s most convenient for them, then they can become truly immersed in the eLearning experience.
- Fits into your schedule.
Busy adult learners can access eLearning courses during work breaks, while they are waiting in the doctor’s office, or when they have a free moment before going to bed after a long day. Literally, eLearning fits into any schedule, because learners can access eLearning courses and learning materials when and where it’s most convenient for them. They don’t have to follow a specific eLearning course schedule or attend learning events, and can even download eLearning course materials if they won’t be able to access the eLearning due to lack of an internet connection.
- You don’t need to make travel arrangements.
Adult learners don’t have to worry about sitting in traffic to get to a class or taking time out of their busy schedules to arrange for transportation to attend a training event. It’s all done virtually, which means there isn’t any need spending time to make travel arrangements or spending money to pay for transportation costs (gas, bus fare, etc.). Even if a learner has a busy lifestyle or lives in a distant area, he/she can still have access to high level education.
- You can customize your learning experiences…
No two learners are alike, which means that no two learning experiences should be alike. eLearning gives busy adult learners the opportunity to get a customized eLearning experience every time, which means that they have complete control over what and how they learn. For example, adult learners can further explore a topic that interests them, master a particular skill set, or quickly complete modules that they have prior experience with. They don’t have to be bored by tedious modules or feel frustrated by challenging modules that must be completed quickly, because they have control over every aspect of the eLearning process.
- Doesn’t interfere with your work or home life.
The primary reason that many adult learners, and particularly those who seem to always be pressed for time, do not enroll in classes is that they simply don’t want to have to choose between educational and personal or professional obligations. As such, they miss out on invaluable learning opportunities that, in all actuality, could improve all aspects of their lives. However, eLearning doesn’t conflict with work schedules or personal appointments. It can be done anywhere and anytime, making it possible for busy adult learners to engage in guilt-free learning. They don’t need to miss out on their child’s performance in the school play, or have to decide between an important work meeting and class. eLearning courses can be accessed when the time is right for each individual adult learner.
- eLearning empowers and motivates you!
One of the most significant benefits of eLearning for busy adult learners, is that it empowers them to learn and take control over their own personal and professional goals. They can acquire new skills that will help them to further their careers or improve their personal lives on some level. They are able to take full responsibility over their education and this provides that extra bit of motivation they need to become active participants in their own learning experience.
- Removes the risks that limit learning potential.
Online learners don’t have to stress about not passing a test or failing in front of their peers. The eLearning environment takes the risk out of learning, because learners no longer have to worry about the fear of failure in public. When you remove this fear, the potential to acquire new knowledge and skills becomes virtually limitless. People are more willing to test their boundaries and to think of new ideas, or to learn through their mistakes, because they simply aren’t afraid of being judged. Mistakes can be a powerful learning tool, because they offer learners the chance to gain experience that they would have not gathered otherwise. eLearning offers busy adults the opportunity to explore a topic at length and expand their educational horizons freely, without any real world risks and consequences.
These are just a handful of the eLearning benefits for busy adult learners. It would be wise to take advantage of the eLearning benefits and make long-life learning your way of life!