LEGAL ISSUES IN NURSING

Mrs. AMRITA ROYM.SC PSYCHIATRIC NURSINGNIMHANS,BANGALORE

1.TORT

A tort is a civil wrong committed against a person or property (real or personal) and is punishable by damages (i.e., monetary compensation) rather than imprisonment.

A] Intentional Torts - a high degree of certainty that harm to another would result

B] Unintentional/negligent tort - carelessness

A] Intentional Torts

Assault: This is the causing of an apprehension of an immediate harmful, offensive or unauthorized contact to a person and a willful attempt or threat to injure.

Battery: Is the harmful, offensive or unauthorized touching of another person.

A] Intentional Torts

False imprisonment: An act or failure to act by the defendant that confines the plaintiff to a confined area.

freedom of movement in all directions must be limited.

The time of confinement does not matter

A] Intentional Torts

No charges can be brought against a hospital or its employees for compelling a client with a contagious disease to remain in the hospital.

Mentally ill clients may also be confined to the hospital if there is a danger that the client may harm himself or others

A] Intentional Torts

Invasion of privacy: Invasion of privacy is the intrusion into the personal life of another, without just cause

It encompasses workplace monitoring, Internet privacy, data collection, and other means of disseminating private information.

In the routine course of client care, absolute privacy is invaded, but this type of invasion is deemed acceptable by the courts.

A] Intentional Torts Negligent disregard for right to privacy,

particularly when the patient is unable to protect himself, such as in the case of unconsciousness or immobility, is legally actionable.

Hospitals, physicians and nurses may become liable for invasion of privacy if they divulge information from a medical record to improper sources.

such as reporting the following incidents: Communicable diseases, child abuse, and elder abuse and gunshot wounds.

A] Intentional Torts

Disclosure of Information: Disclosure of Information is somewhat similar to invasion of privacy.

It occurs when a client's problems are inappropriately discussed with any third party.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

A] Intentional Torts Defamation of Character: Defamation is an act

of communication that causes someone to be shamed, ridiculed, held in contempt, lowered in the estimation of the community, or to lose employment status or earnings or otherwise suffer a damaged reputation.

Libel and slander are subcategories of defamation.

Accusing someone of a crime Accusing someone of having a horrible disease Using words which affect a person's profession or

business

A] Intentional Torts

Misrepresentation and Fraud:  Misrepresentation and fraud can

occur when a health professional misleads a client to prevent the discovery of a mistake in treatment.

Not only the physician but also the hospital may be held liable for failure to disclose negligent acts to an injured party.

A] Intentional Torts

Infliction of Mental/Emotional Distress: Intentional infliction of emotional or mental distress is a tort claim for intentional conduct that results in a mental reaction.

This includes imposing mental suffering resulting from painful emotions, such as grief, public humiliation, despair, shame, wounded pride, etc.

B] Negligent Torts

Negligent tort means a tort committed by failure to act as a reasonable person to someone to whom s/he owes a duty, as required by law under the circumstances.

negligent torts are not deliberate, and there must be an injury resulting from the breach of the duty.

Examples of negligent torts are car accidents, slip and fall accidents, and most medical malpractice cases.

B] Negligent Torts

There are two degrees of negligence: ordinary and gross.

Ordinary negligence is the failure to do (or not do) what a reasonable and prudent person would do (or not do) under the same circumstances in the situation in question.

Gross negligence is more severe and includes the intentional omission of proper care or the commission of an act constituting the improper delivery of care.

2. MALPRACTICE

Malpractice is very similar to negligence, but it is more specific.

Medical malpractice is the failure of a medical professional to follow the accepted standards of practice of his or her profession, resulting in harm to the patient.

Malpractice includes four elements :

Duty of care - a relationship between the medical professional and the patient at the time of the alleged injury.

Breach of duty is defined as the failure to adhere to the standard of care set by the nursing profession, thus departing from a specific duty owed to the client.

The element of injury not only includes physical harm but also mental anguish and other invasions of the patient's rights.

The element of proximal cause (also called causation) involves the concept of "foresee ability"; that is, a logical link must exist between the nurse's act and the injury suffered.

Examples of malpractice

According to Reising and Allen, common malpractice claims arise against nurses when nurses fail to: Assess and monitor. Follow standards of care. Use equipment in a responsible manner. Communicate. Document. Act as a patient advocate and follow the

chain of command.

Minimizing the risk of malpractice

Reising (2012) suggests that the following actions can help minimize a nurse's risk of being sued for malpractice:

Know and follow your state's nurse practice act and your facility's policies and procedures.

Stay up to date in your field of practice.

Assess your patients in accordance with policy and their physicians' orders and, more frequently, if indicated by your nursing judgment.

Promptly report abnormal assessments, including laboratory data, and document what was reported and any follow-up.

Follow up on assessments or care delegated to others.

Communicate openly and factually with patients and their families and other health care providers.

Document all nursing care factually and thoroughly and ensure that the documentation reflects the nursing process; never chart ahead of time.

Promptly report and file appropriate incident reports for deviations in care.

THANK YOU