Chapter 7 - Legal Dimensions of Nursing Practice

‭Definition of Law‬ ‭●‬ ‭Standard or rule of conduct established and enforced by the government‬ ‭●‬ ‭Designed to protect the rights of the public‬ ‭Law Terminology‬ ‭●‬ ‭Litigation: Process of bringing and trying a lawsuit‬ ‭●‬ ‭Plaintiff: Person bringing a suit‬ ‭●‬ ‭Defendant: Person being accused of a crime‬ ‭○‬ ‭Presumed innocent until proven guilty‬ ‭Professional and Legal Regulation of Nursing Practice‬ ‭●‬ ‭Standards: Nursing knowledge‬ ‭●‬ ‭Nurse Practice Act: Law‬ ‭●‬ ‭Credentialing:‬ ‭○‬ ‭Accreditation: Education meets the requirements of Nurse Practice Act‬ ‭■‬ ‭Ex. NCLEX eligibility‬ ‭○‬ ‭Licensure: Permission to work in a certain job‬ ‭■‬ ‭Usually granted by the government (Board of Nursing)‬ ‭○‬ ‭Certification: Certifying that one has enough knowledge to work in a specialty‬ ‭■‬ ‭Usually granted by non-government organizations‬ ‭Question:‬‭The state Nurse Practice Act is the most‬‭important law affecting nursing practice.‬ ‭a.‬ ‭True‬ ‭b.‬ ‭False‬ ‭Criminal Law‬ ‭●‬ ‭Crime: Wrong against a person or the person’s property as well as the‬‭public‬ ‭○‬ ‭Misdemeanor: Punishable by fines or less than one year imprisonment‬ ‭○‬ ‭Felony: Punishable by imprisonment for more than one year‬ ‭○‬ ‭Involvement by the government (local or state level)‬ ‭●‬ ‭Tort: Wrong committed by a person against another person or that person’s property; tried‬ ‭in civil court (less severe)‬ ‭○‬ ‭Intentional‬ ‭○‬ ‭Unintentional‬ ‭Intentional Torts‬ ‭●‬ ‭Assault and battery‬ ‭○‬ ‭Assault: Attempting to harm someone‬ ‭○‬ ‭Battery: Physical harm‬ ‭●‬ ‭Defamation of character‬ ‭‬ ● ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭ ‬ ‭Slander (oral) vs. libel (via media)‬ ○ ‭Invasion of privacy‬ ‭False imprisonment (ex. Unnecessary use of restraints)‬ ‭Fraud (ex. Documenting incorrect/inaccurate patient data)‬ ‭Malpractice: Intentional patient harm; professional negligence‬ ‭Unintentional Torts‬ ‭●‬ ‭Negligence: Carelessness, can lead to patient harm‬ ‭○‬ ‭Act of omission: Should have been done but was not‬ ‭○‬ ‭Act of commission: Should have not been done but was‬ ‭Categories of Malpractice Claims‬ ‭●‬ ‭Failure to follow standards of care‬ ‭●‬ ‭Failure to use equipment in a responsible manner‬ ‭●‬ ‭Failure to assess and monitor‬ ‭●‬ ‭Failure to communicate‬ ‭●‬ ‭Failure to document‬ ‭●‬ ‭Failure to act as a patient advocate or to follow the chain of command‬ ‭ uestion:‬‭Which is the correct term for this nursing‬‭action: A nurse falsely imprisons a patient‬ Q ‭by an unauthorized use of restraints?‬ ‭a.‬ ‭Crime‬ ‭b.‬ ‭Tort‬ ‭c.‬ ‭Misdemeanor‬ ‭d.‬ ‭Felony‬ ‭Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)‬ ‭●‬ ‭To see and copy their health record‬ ‭●‬ ‭To update their health record‬ ‭●‬ ‭To request correction of any mistakes‬ ‭●‬ ‭To get a list of disclosures‬ ‭●‬ ‭To request a restriction on certain uses or disclosures‬ ‭●‬ ‭To choose how to receive health information‬ ‭Elements of Informed Consent‬ ‭●‬ ‭Disclosure‬ ‭●‬ ‭Comprehension‬ ‭●‬ ‭Competence‬ ‭●‬ ‭Voluntariness‬ ‭ uestion:‬‭In all healthcare agencies, informed and voluntary consent is needed for admission,‬ Q ‭for specialized diagnostic procedures/medical-surgical treatment, and for any experimental‬ ‭treatments or procedures.‬ ‭a.‬ ‭True‬ ‭b.‬ ‭False‬ ‭Reasons for Suspending/Revoking a License‬ ‭●‬ ‭Drug or alcohol abuse‬ ‭●‬ ‭Fraud‬ ‭●‬ ‭Deceptive practice‬ ‭●‬ ‭Criminal acts‬ ‭●‬ ‭Previous disciplinary actions‬ ‭●‬ ‭Gross or ordinary negligence‬ ‭●‬ ‭Physical or mental impairments, including age‬ ‭Four Elements of Liability‬ ‭●‬ ‭Duty: The defendant’s legal obligation‬ ‭●‬ ‭Breach of duty: Failure to meet that obligation‬ ‭●‬ ‭Causation: Actions or inaction that caused the plaintiff’s injuries‬ ‭●‬ ‭Damages: Plaintiff was injured or suffered losses as a result‬ ‭Roles of Nurses in Legal Proceedings‬ ‭●‬ ‭Nurse as defendant‬ ‭●‬ ‭Nurse as fact witness‬ ‭●‬ ‭Nurse as expert witness‬ ‭Recommendations for Nurse Defendant‬ ‭●‬ ‭Do not discuss the case with those involved in it‬ ‭●‬ ‭Do not alter patient records‬ ‭●‬ ‭Cooperate fully with your attorney‬ ‭●‬ ‭Be courteous on witness stand‬ ‭●‬ ‭Do not volunteer any information‬ ‭Legal Safeguards for Nurses‬ ‭●‬ ‭Competent practice‬ ‭●‬ ‭Informed consent or refusal‬ ‭●‬ ‭Contracts‬ ‭●‬ ‭Collective‬ ‭●‬ ‭Bargaining‬ ‭●‬ ‭Patient education‬ ‭‬ ● ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭●‬ ‭ xecuting physician orders‬ E ‭Delegating nursing care‬ ‭Documentation‬ ‭Appropriate use of social media‬ ‭Adequate staffing‬ ‭Whistle-blowing‬ ‭Professional liability insurance‬ ‭Risk management programs‬ ‭Just culture‬ ‭Incident, variance, or occurrence reports‬ ‭Patient’s rights‬ ‭Good samaritan laws‬ ‭Student liability‬