PPT Lecture Flashcards
How many legal systems are there in the US?
- 1 federal system + 50 state systems
True or false: medical licensing and regulations are come from federal laws.
FALSE- they come from state laws
What are the 3 branches of the federal government?
Executive- president/cabinet/agencies.
Legislative- house and senate
Judicial- US sepreme court/court of appeals/US district courts/special courts
What is the highest court in the federal level?
US Supreme court
What is the highest court in the state level?
Supreme court
What is the first level appellate court in the federal level?
US courts of appeal
What is the first level appellate court in PA?
Superior and Commonwealth
What are the trial courts (general jurisdiction) in the federal level?
US District courts
What are the trial courts (general jurisdiction) in PA?
Courts of common pleas
What are the 3 sources of laws?
- Consitutions (federal and states)
- Statutory laws (write it/committees/both houses/confrence committiees)
- Common law/case law
What is the source of law for state medical boards?
Statutory law
What is the “stare decisis” under common/case law?
That courts abide by prior decisions
like Roe v. Wade and crap like that
Who does private law concern differences/problems?
Between individuals. Judge judy!
What is a form of civil law where $ damages are sought to compensate for a loss or harm?
Torts.
Judge Judy style!
What are the 2 forms of torts?
unintention and intentional
What type of law provides remedies if promises are not fulfilled under private law?
Contract law
Between who does public law concern?
Between the government and individuals (criminal law)
Tommy presents to the office with a deep laceration to the right knee. It’s 4:55pm and just before office closing time. The doc quickly looks at it puts a bandaid on it and skips suturing because he wants to make his 5:30 tee-off time. A week later the knee becomes horribly infected and necrotic and now is being questioned for amputation. What type of unintentional tort did the doctor perform?
Negligence
What are the 4 elements of a negligence action?
duty, breach, causation proximate and damages.
What is the name for the unintentional tort when a healthcare professional has a duty to act but fails to act in a reasonable, competent manner, thus harming the patient?
Professional negligence (malpractice)
What are the components too negligent misrepresentation?
Statement—oral or written (yes, texts count)
That maker knows will be relied upon
Whose truth the maker is careless in verifying
That turns out to be untrue
That is in fact relied upon by a party
And the party is injured due to reliance on the statement
Assault, battery, false imprisonment, defamation/slander, invasion of privacy, and fraud are examples of what type of tort?
Intentional tort
Procedures without consent are an example of what type of intentional tort?
battery
What are the 4 ESSENTIAL elements to form a valid and enforceable contract?
Offer
Acceptance
Consideration
Meeting of the minds/legal commitment
What are the 3 types of contracts?
written, oral, quasi (equitable estoppel)
What happens to the contract between a doc and a patient if there is patient abandonment?
IT IS VIOLATED OH GOD.
What are the 3 components of the contract for services with a physician?
- an agreement to pay for services for as logn as they are received by the pt
- truthful disclosure of conditions by the pt
- an agreement to provide services by the physician
“People v.” and “US v.” are example of what type of law? Criminal or Administrative?
Criminal
State licensing and regulations, CME’s, discipline, Administrative Law Judge hearing are examples of what type of law? Criminal or Administrative?
Administrative
These 6 items are part of what concept? Judicial Venue Initiation Discovery Standard of Proof Goal for Defence
Judicial Keys
What is jurisdiction?
subject matter and personal
What is initiation?
grand jury/preliminary hearing vs summons and complaint
What is discovery/rule 26?
No surprises, subpoenas key (witnesses and evidence must be disclosed)
What is standard of proof?
basically proving it: somethings that beyond resonable doubt (criminal), clear and convincing (civil), preponderance of evidence (most civil), substantial evidence in the recor (some federal administrative law cases)
What is the key focus in every state for medical practice acts?
Patient safety
Define: a physician must provide information to a pt that a reasonable, prudent person would want before he/she makes a decision about treatment.
Prudent Person rule (aka the reasonable person standard)
What things do you need to tell patients before you treat them?
diagnosis, risks, expected benefits, alternative treatments, costs (including pain)
What is informed consent?
When the pt must understand AND agree to the procedure.
True or False: Informed consent only has to be obtained where there is serious risk of harm to the patient.
FALSE. You need it for ANY procedure with more than a slight risk of harm to the pt.
What is the key duty of the physician, even prior to the enactment of HIPAA?
Confidentiality
What is the “Respondeat Superior?”
How physicians are responsible for those who work under their supervision for acts that occur within scope of employment
True or False: Physicians must enforce state scope of practice rules for allied health professionals.
True
Define: this is a practice to control or minimize the incidence of problem behavior that can lead to injury to patients and employees.
Risk management
What are the goals of risk management?
to reduce risk of liability for the physician/employer and to identify problems and formulate plans to eliminate them
When should you use incidence reports?
To document an unusual occurrence (fall, medication error, needle stick) and make changes to prevent occurrance
What are the 5 components to an incident report?
SDFWK
Sign Date Factual 5 W's (who what where when and WHY) Keep confidential
What must physicans have to get eligible for Medicare/caid?
EMR’s
Since Managed Care Organizations are on the rise from cost containment, who plays the biggest role of the gatekeeper?
Primary care physicians
Who is responsible for the actions in a partnership form of practice?
each partners is responsible for the actions of all other partners, includoing partnership debts and legal actions.
In an S corporation, how does the income pass?
through to owners and the owners pay the income tax
In a C corporation, how does the tax get paid?
The corportation pays the tax and then dividend is paid to the shareholders. The shareholders then pay taxes on income (so theyre taxed twice)
True or False: a physician cannot choose which patients he/she treats.
False- he/she can refuse to take someone on as a new pt but cannot refuse if it’s an emergency
44,000-98,000 people are killed each year in the US from what?
Medical mistakes
What is the most serious complication for post-surgery?
Sepsis
A 16 year old girl arrives to the doctors office alone asking about birth control and the possibility of STD’s. Are you allowed to treat this patient even though she’s a minor?
Yes, you can treat here if she’s considered a “mature minor” and can understand the diagnosis and treatments.
True or False: Emancipated minors (from court order, marriage or military) between the ages of 15-18 can be treated without parental consent.
True
What does a living will do?
sets forth in advance treatment and care requests in the event of catastrophic situation where the pt may be incompetent to voice wishes concerning medical treatment.
What is a durable power of attorney?
allows the pt to select a representative to act on their behalf. may be to make healthcare decisions only.
What is the #1 cause for malpractice?
Breakdown of physician-pt communication
What is the range for the statute of limitations for medical malpractice in the states?
1-3 years
What causes compensatory damages for malpractice?
For actual loss of income, and emotional pain and suffering, injury: future included