Chapter 5 and 6 Flashcards
- Liable
Legally responsible or obligated
5Standard of care
The level of performance expected of a health care practioner in carrying out his or her professinal duties
5Duty of care
The legal obligation of health care workers to patients and sometimes non patients
5Reasonable person standard
That standard of behavior that judges a persons actions in a situation according to what a reasonable person would or would not do under similar circumstances.
5Confidentiality
The act of holding information in confidence, not to be released to unauthorized individuals
5Privilages communication
Information held confidential within a protected relationhsip
5Malfeasance
The performance of a totally wrongful and unlawful act
5Misfeasance
The performance of a lawful act in an illegal or impproper manner
5Nonfeasane
The failure to act when one should
5res ipsa loquitur
The thing speaks for itself: also know as the doctrine of common knowledge. A situation that is so obviously negligent that no expert witness need be called
5Damages
Monetary awards sought by plaintiffs in lawsuits
5Wrongful death statutes
States statue that allow a person beneficiaries to collect for loss to the estate of the deceased for future earnings when a death is judged to have been due to negligence
5Summons
A written notification issued by the clerk of the court and delivered with a copy of the complaint to the defendant in a law sui, directing him or her to respond to the charges brought in a court of law
5Subpoena
A legal document requiring the recipient to appear as a witness in court or to give a deposition
5Deposition
Sworn te the testimony given and recorded outside the courtroom during the pretrial phase of a case
5Interrogatorry
A written set of questions requiring written answers from a plaintiff or defendant under oath
5Subpoena duces tecum
A legal document requiring the recipient to bring certain written records to court to be used as evidence in a lawsuit
5Testimony
Sratements sworn to under oath by withnesses testifying in court and giving depositions
5Alternative dispute resolution ADR
Settlement of civil disputes between parties using neutral mediators or arbitrators with out going to court
A physician who owns a physician’s office is legally responsible for her employees. What is the term for this responsibility?
Liable
As employers, physicians have general liability for many aspects of their business. Which of the following does not fall under the responsibility of the employer?
Employee safety going to and from the work place-
In a hospital setting a certain standard of care is expected of health care practitioners. Which of the following best describes this concept?
An expected level of performance-
A physician working in an emergency room is obligated to treat all the patients who come through the door. This is an example of which of the following concepts?
Duty of care
A physician treating patients in a long-term care facility determines that a patient has a communicable disease that could cause an outbreak in the facility. The physician works with the administrator of the facility and the public health department to protect other residents and employees from exposure to the disease. Under some state laws, this physician is obligated to protect nonpatients in accordance with which of the following standards?
Duty of care-
A health care worker is responsible for his or her actions or failure to act. Which of the following best describes this responsibility to prevent negligence from occurring?
Reasonable person standard-
In a court of law, it was decided that a patient was injured when a nurse failed to act according to the reasonable person standard. This nurse is guilty of which of the following torts?
Negligence
A physician is a specialist in obstetrics. Which of the following is true regarding the standard of care expected of this physician?
The physician will be held to the same standard of care as other obstetricians.-
A physician has an informal consultation with another physician in his office. Which of the following opinions have the courts generally held in cases of negligence related to the information discussed in informal consultations?
They do not establish a doctor-patient relationship.-
A nurse recording data in a patient’s medical record maintains confidentiality at all times. Which of the following describes this practice?
Not releasing patient information to unauthorized individuals-
Which of the following is an example of privileged communication
A patient tells his physician that he is addicted to pain killers.-
In many states, revocation of a physician’s license may occur due to which of the following acts?
Breach of confidence-
Since health care procedures and facilities present numerous opportunities for a breach of confidentiality, health care practitioners must make every effort to safeguard each patient’s privacy. Which of the following is a recommended guideline for protecting a patient’s privacy?
When on the telephone with a patient, do not use his or her name if others may hear.-
In which of the following situations may patient confidentiality be waived?
When a third party requests a medical examination of a person for employment-
Which of the following is the basis for professional malpractice claims and the most common liability in medicine?
Negligence-
A nurse dispenses a painkiller to a patient without the physician’s order for the medication. This is an example of which of the following torts?
Malfeasance-
Which of the following is an example of misfeasance?
A nurse is changing a patient’s IV line, but does not wash her hands prior to procedure.-
A physician who is treating a patient who has pancreatic cancer provides competent care for his patient, thereby preventing a charge of negligence. Which of the following four Ds of negligence refers to this responsibility to properly care for a patient?
Duty
A surgeon removes the wrong limb from a patient. Which of the following four Ds of negligence refers to the current condition of the patient?
Damages-
There are four elements (4 Ds) that must be present in a given situation to prove that a health care professional is guilty of negligence. Which of the following is not one of the “four Ds of negligence?”
Defense-
A health care provider breaches the duty of care to a patient. This element of negligence is defined as:
dereliction.-
A patient sues a physician for malpractice. Upon whom is the burden of proof for the charge of negligence?
The plaintiff-
In some states medical review panels must screen claims before they are brought to court. Which of the following are usually members of these panels?
Physicians with expertise in the medical specialty in question-
The Joint Commission addresses accurately identifying patients and improving communication among caregivers by making sure all accredited health care organizations implement which of the following requirements?
Use a process for taking verbal or telephone orders or critical test results that requires a verification read-back by the person receiving the information.-
The Joint Commission addresses improving the safety of infusion pumps, improving the effectiveness of clinical alarm systems, and reducing the risk of health-care acquired infections. Which of the following is a recommended guideline to accomplish these goals?
Manage as sentinel events all identified cases of unanticipated death or major permanent loss of function associated with a health care-acquired infection-
A surgeon removes a patient’s kidney and later finds out that she removed the wrong kidney. This patient can sue under which of the following doctrines?
Res ipsa loquitur-
A patient files for negligence under the doctrine res ipsa loquitur. What is the English meaning of this Latin wording?
The thing speaks for itself”-
Which of the following is a stated condition for res ipsa loquitur to apply to a lawsuit?
It must be apparent there would be no injury had reasonable care been used-
Which of the following examples of negligence would fall under the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur?
A patient suffers an infection caused by the use of unsterilized instruments.-
A patient was harmed when the oxygen tank she was using exploded. When filing a lawsuit what type of damages might this patient be awarded?
Consequential-
In an informal proceeding of arbitration, each side presents evidence and witnesses. In the alternative dispute resolution method called med-arb, who resolves the dispute if the two parties are unable to reach agreement after mediation?
The mediator
When no written contract exists, who chooses an arbitrator to resolve disputes?
The two involved parties select an arbitrator and the two arbitrators select a third