Legal Concerns and Insurance - Ch. 3 Flashcards
a patient can sue for negligence under the basis of 4 components - what are they?
- duty of care to patient
- conduct fell short of standard of care
- therapist caused the injury to occur
- damages were made (property, personal)
what are ATs held to in terms of reasonable conduct?
held to the standards of a prudent professional and NOT a prudent person
def’n of a tort
legal wrongs
if someone claims a tort against you, what can they charge you?
they can charge for damages in order to “fix” whatever that was caused by the therapist
when can a person charge you for a “make them suffer”
they can only charge you if the tort was INTENTIONAL
what are the 3 different types of torts and explain each of them with an example
nonfeasance - not doing what you were supposed to do (supposed to give sound assessment tools, but failed to do so)
malfeasance - doing things that are out of your scope and or you’re not qualified to do (example: gr. 5 mb)
misfeasance - doing things that you’re qualified for but you suck at it (burning someone while using IFC)
if you’re employed by an institution and you’re being sued for negligence, what can sometimes protect you?
sovereign community - government or employee of government is protected and cannot be charged for negligence (but it varies from area to area)
what actions fall under the good samaritan act that prevent you from being liable when acting off duty?
staying within your scope and referring out when appropriate - stating all the facts
an 18 year old is sueing an AT for damages from 2 years ago when they broke their ankle because the AT “refused” to tape them - is this still allowed? what’s this concept called?
yes - minors usually are granted 3 years after turning 18 yr to claim damages - “statue of limitations”
generally as an adult, you have 1-5 years to file lawsuit
think of ways to reduce the incidence of litigations
document the shit out of everything
if someone refuses care - they must sign to comply
no use of damaged equipment
don’t go beyond your scope (use of modalities, techniques)
in waiver form, how is this a way to avoid legal action if injury has occurred when participating in activity?
the AT has to take the burden of relaying the risks and assumptions to the athlete before playing/ participating
It’s a way to disclose all potential risks and laying everything out such that the athlete is assumed to have read it and agreed to comply and knows what to expect coming into the activity.
when holding a product liable (such as a helmet), who else is liable for the damages that were caused?
whole saler
assembling manufacturer
retail store owner
manufacturer
in what situation would the manufacturer and company not be held liable for a product?
if the product was used indirectly of the injured person (example: if you got hit by another helmet and you got injured but not the person actually wearing the helmet)
an AT decides to change the screws on the helmet of a teen football player - what is the problem with this?
once the therapist changes anything of the equipment being used, it’s not longer liable to the manufacturer, if anything happens the AT is 100% liable
an athlete get tackled on the field of a soccer plaza and needs to be sent to the hospital - in order to cover the costs of this, what kind of insurance would the soccer plaza need in the event of this happening?
accidental insurance - ensures the person gets prompt medical attention but it doesn’t cover catastrophic injuries
