Linda Wiater, R.N., LNC – President
Brenda Gittings, R.N., LNCC – President-Elect
Tammy Haines, R.N., BSN, CCRN, CLNC – Past President
Sue A. Blackhurst, B.S.N., R.N., LNCC – Secretary/Treasurer

BOARD MEMBER BIOGRAPHIES

Linda Wiater, R.N. received her RN in 1971 from the Ohio Valley General Hospital School of Nursing, Wheeling, WV.  She was a clinical nurse for 25 years and has been a legal nurse consultant for 23 years.  Linda is currently employed full time in-house at the firm of Davies, McFarland, & Carroll, P.C.  She is experienced in Medical Malpractice, Defense and Plaintiff, Personal Injury, Risk Management, Social Security Disability and Workers Compensation.  Linda is an active member of the American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants (AALNC) and the West Virginia Upper Ohio Valley Chapter of the AALNC.  She was a founding member of the West Virginia Upper Ohio Valley Chapter AALNC and served as its first President.  She has also served on its Board of Directors all but one year since its inception and her current position if President.  Prior to her presidency of the West Virginia Upper Ohio Valley Chapter, Linda was President of the Pittsburgh Chapter of AALNC and served on its Board of Directors from 1998-2001.  She is also founding member of the West Virginia Bar Association LNC Section and served on its Board of Directors as first Secretary.     

Brenda Gittings, R.N., LNCC graduated from the Ohio Valley General Hospital School of Nursing in 1976. She was clinically active for nineteen years working in Intensive Care, Community Health Nursing, Home Health and Hemodialysis. Brenda has been a legal nurse consultant with the law firm of Bachmann, Hess, Bachmann & Garden, PLLC in Wheeling, WV since 1990. Brenda has experience in defense/plaintiff medical malpractice, defense/plaintiff personal injury and defense/plaintiff product liability. Brenda achieved the Legal Nurse Consultant Certified (LNCC) in April 2005 after successfully passing the national certification examination. Brenda is a founding member of the West Virginia Upper Ohio Valley Chapter of the AALNC and has served on its Board of Directors.    Brenda is Past-President, past Treasurer, Secretary and Director-at-Large of the local chapter and presently serves as President-Elect. 

Tammy Haines, RN, BSN, CCRN, LNC, 2011 president of the Upper Ohio Valley Chapter of the AALNC.  Ms. Haines received her BSN from Wheeling Jesuit University.  Currently she is employed at the defense firm of Marshall, Dennehey, Warner, Coleman & Goggin in Pittsburgh, PA as a Legal Nurse Analyst.  Her nursing background is in Trauma-Critical Care, Pharmaceutical Drug Research and Home Care.  Ms. Haines is a published author in The American Journal of Critical Care serving as the co-investigator of "The Reliability of Bladder Pressure Monitoring" in the critical care area.  She maintained the CCRN certification for 19 years and currently holds an alumni status.  She previously served as an in-house legal nurse consultant for a plaintiff medical malpractice firm and currently maintains an independent LNC practice, Tri-State Legal Nurse Consulting.  Within the Upper Ohio Valley Chapter of the AALNC, Ms. Haines has also served as President-Elect and Director-at-large.

Sue Blackhurst, B.S.N., R.N., LNCC, is a Registered Nurse with nearly 13 years of clinical experience in the areas of adult medical and surgical critical care, cardiac care and stepdown, operating room, and post-anesthesia recovery.  She has been a Legal Nurse Consultant for 16 years, currently with the law firm of Davies, McFarland and Carroll, PC, Pittsburgh, PA, since 2006. In her capacity as a Legal Nurse Consultant, Sue works with attorneys in the defense of insurance companies and their insureds in the areas of medical malpractice and personal injury. Prior to her present position, she worked for Steptoe & Johnson, PLLC, a large defense law firm in West Virginia, from 1996 to 2006. 

Sue graduated from West Virginia University School of Nursing in 1981. In 2005 Sue achieved the status of Legal Nurse Consultant Certified (LNCC), after successfully meeting the requirements through examination and other means that validate qualifications, knowledge and practice in the field of legal nurse consulting. LNCC is the only legal nurse consulting credential recognized by American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants (AALNC) and accredited by the American Board of Nursing Specialties (ABNS).