Legal responsibility and duty of candour Flashcards
What is the PAs position
The PA works in association & under the supervision of the doctor as an integral part of
the medical team.’
However
‘The PA will be accountable for their own practice within the boundaries of supervision
and defined scope of practice.’
What is duty of care
A legal obligation requiring adherence to a standard of reasonable care while performing any acts that could foreseeably harm others.
How to fulfil that duty?
- Perform competently
- Inform supervisor if you cannot
- Don’t work beyond level of competence
What is competence?
The standard to be expected of an “ordinarily competent practitioner” performing that particular task or role.
What classes as negligence?
You must have:
1. A Duty of Care to the person.
2. You must breach that duty.
3. The breach must directly cause injury.
What makes good patient notes?
- Legibly written
- Include the date and time
- Avoid abbreviations
- Made at the time of treatment-‘contemporaneous’
- Don’t alter an entry or disguise additions
- Make any additions with a separate time and date.
- Avoid unnecessary comments
How to report bad practice?
- Discuss with supervising doctor
Larger concerns: - Access whistleblowing policy
- Discuss with HR
What to do when a medical mistake occurs?
- Abide by our ‘duty of candour’.
*-Take responsibility for a mistake if appropriate. - Discuss with your supervisor.
- Try to rectify it.
- Inform patients of any adverse incidents.
- Explain the likely short-term and long-term effects
- Provide patients with a prompt sympathetic account when you make a mistake.
- Apologise if it is appropriate.
- Call your defence organisation.
- Learn from your mistakes and how to stop them happening again.
- Perform an SEA
What is duty of candour?
A legal duty on hospital, community and mental health trusts to inform and apologise to patients if there have been mistakes in their care that have led to significant harm.
