Unit 4- Legalities

Question 1

What are laws?

Answer 1

1. Man-made rules that regulate human social conduct in formally prescribed and legally binding manner

Question 2

What are the 3 types of Tort’s law?

Answer 2

1. Intentional
2. Quasi-intentional
3. Unintentional

Question 3

What is Intentional torts?

Answer 3

1. Willful acts that violate another person’s rights or property usually physical acts; may result in crime

Question 4

What are examples of intentional torts?

Answer 4

1. Assault
   
   • saying or doing something that will make a person genuinely fear that he or she will be touched without consent
2. Battery
   
   • unconsented touching of a person, or anything he or she is wearing or holding, or anything that is attached to him or her, without the person permission; does not have to cause injury
3. False imprisonment
   
   • Making a person stay in a place against his or her wishes; can be verbal, physical or chemical
4. Intentional infliction of emotional abuse
   
   • The use of extreme or outrageous conduct that causes severe emotional distress in the family or patient.
5. Conversion of property
   
   • Interference by the nurse with the right to possession of the patients property by either intermeddling or destroying the property

Question 5

What is Quasi-Intentional torts?

Answer 5

Violation of a person’s reputation, personal privacy or freedom from malicious or unfounded legal prosecution.

Question 6

What should we know about Quasi-intentional torts?

Answer 6

1. Has characteristics of both intentional and unintentional torts
2. Principles of low for intentional torts apply
3. Often deal with communication issues

Question 7

Defamation of character is a type of Quasi-intentional torts. What is defamation?

Answer 7

The sharing of information that unintentionally harms a person’s reputation

Question 8

What is slander?

Answer 8

Type of defamation which is a type of Quasi-intentional torts

Oral defamation of character that is intentional and malicious

Question 9

What is Libel?

Answer 9

Type of defamation which is a type of Quasi-Intentional torts

Written defamation of character that is intentional and malicious

Question 10

What is Invasion of privacy (Quasi-Intentional Torts)

Answer 10

Violation of a person’s right to keep information about self, family and property from public scrutiny

1. Not an absolute right– can and may be required by law to be breached in certain circumstances such as child, spousal or elder abuse; gun shot wounds; knife wounds; rape; communicable diseases; suspected crimes

Question 11

What is breach of confidentiality (Quasi-Intentional Torts)?

Answer 11

Revealing information obtained from privileged communications

Question 12

What is privileged communications in terms of breach of confidentiality?

Answer 12

A special type of privacy that exists in certain professional relationships where its violation would destroy trust and confidence in the professional

1. Physican- patient
2. Lawyer- client
3. Priest- penitent

Question 13

What is unintentional torts?

Answer 13

A wrong occurring to another person leading to injury even though it was not intended

Same a negligence: failure to act as a reasonable and prudent person would act in the same situation (standard)

Question 14

What is malpractice? (Unintentional torts)

Answer 14

Professional negligence; failure to act as a competent and caring nurse (higher standard)

Question 15

To prove malpractice, the patient must show?

Answer 15

A wrong that occurred because of a professional’s failure to act as a reasonable and prudent professional would have acted in the same situation

The essential characteristics
1. The person must be working in a professional capacity (paid or volunteer )
2. The wrong must be demonstrated
3. The wrong must be shown to have been caused by the failure of the profession to act as a reasonable and prudent member of that profession

Question 16

What is legal liability?

Answer 16

Occurs if a person is found guilty of any tort; generally results in the payment of damages

Question 17

What is compensatory damages?

Answer 17

The actual costs incurred because of the negligent act

Question 18

What is punitive damages?

Answer 18

Money awarded beyond the compensatory damages to “punish” the violator and send a message that this behavior is unacceptable’ tend to much greater amounts of money

Question 19

To show liability, the patient must be able to prove the following

Answer 19

1. A duty to care as defined by a standard of care (local vs. national standard)
2. Failure to meet that standard of care
3. Foreseeability of harm
4. Actual harm to the patient.

If any conditions are missing, then there is no lawsuit

Question 20

What are the different types of liability?

Answer 20

1. Personal
2. Supervisor
3. Employer

Question 21

What is personal liability?

Answer 21

1. Each professional is responsible for his or her own actions

Question 22

What is supervisor liability?

Answer 22

Supervisors are responsible for the actions of those working under their direction.

Question 23

What is employer liability?

Answer 23

Employers can be held responsible for actions committed by employees

Question 24

Employers responsibilities include

Answer 24

1. Hiring qualified persons
2. Maintaining safe work environment
3. Providing supervision and direction of employees
4. Providing education

Question 25

What are common causes for malpractice suits?

Answer 25

1. Burns: from hot water, heating pads, lights, malfunctioning equipment, too strong solutions, showers, baths
2. Falls: out of bed, while ambulating, due to wet floors, defective equipment, over-sedation
3. Failure to observe and take appropriate action; refusing to answer call lights, orthopedic injuries, not taking vital signs, leaving patients alone
4. Medication/injection errors
5. Dispensing meds as an RN
6. Mistaken identity; meds; procedures; surgery
7. Failure to communicate not informing MD of a patient problem; poor shift reports inability to reach MD
8. Abandonment; leaving a patient alone who should be left alone
9. Loss or damage to patient property; dentures, clothing, hearing aids
10. THings left in patients during surgery
11. Lack of informed consent

Question 26

What is statue of limitation?

Answer 26

1. A time period after which a malpractice suit cannot be filed
   
   • generally, 2 years after discovery of injury
   • in children, up to age 21

Question 27

What is the patient self determination act?

Answer 27

1. Federal law that requires that all federally funded institutions inform clients of their tight to prepare advacne directive

Question 28

What is the purpose and benefits of an advance directive?

Answer 28

1. Advance directives encourage patients to discuss and document their wishes concerning the type of treatment and care they want in advance
2. This eases the burden on their families and providers when it comes time for a decision

Question 29

What are the two types of advance directive?

Answer 29

1. Living will
2. Medical durable power of attorney

Question 30

What is a living will?

Answer 30

Document stating what health care a client will accept or refuse after the client is no longer competent or able to make that decision

Question 31

What is a medical durable power of attorney?

Answer 31

Health care proxy, designates another person to make health-care decisions for a person if the client becomes incompetent or unable to make such decisions

Question 32

What are characteristics of a suit prone nurse?

Answer 32

1. Insensitive to patient needs
2. Undereducated
3. Overconfident
4. Authoritarian
5. Inflexible
6. Pre-occupied with personal issues

Question 33

How can you protect yourself?

Answer 33

1. don’t criticize other professionals
2. Stay within your scope of practice
3. be definite about instructions
4. Take extra precautions with telephone orders.
5. Monitor the care of those you supervise
6. Check the condition of health-care equipment you are using
7. If in doubt, stop
8. Watch for adverse outcomes (medications, tx, etc.)
9. If you suspect a law suit, notify your insurance carrier immediately
10. Never tell a patient you have malpractice insurance
11. If a suit is filed dont talk to anyone but your lawyer