Nurses, Legal risk, Malpractice
In today's litigious society, it is possible for a nurse to be involved in legal matters of the country she or he works for, either directly or indirectly. By understanding the cases involved, nurses can avoid many of the high risk areas of trouble. Due to the shortage of nursing officers, patient load and long hours of working are unavoidable. Nurses are often exhausted and become more prone to making errors which may entangle them legally. A nurse may be placed in a legal situation in the following circumstances (Killion & Dempski, 2006).
Negligence is one of the causes which can entangle a nurse legally. It is assumed that patients are usually under the care of a nurse and failure to take an action that should have been taken is negligence. A patient has the right to expect a certain level of care which if not given or maintained can pursue a legal action to remedy the results of negligence which include; medication not administered, supervision not carried out and physical negligence of patients critically ill (Westrick & Dempski 2009). Malpractice is doing something wrong intentionally when the expectation is so obvious. It may be as a result of inadequate training or fatigue of the nursing officer. Incorrect positioning of the patient to cause discomfort, strain to joints and muscles are included in malpractice. It is considered as a doctor's legal risk as compared to the nursing profession.
[...] One of the greatest legal defenses of a nurse is correct and proper documentation. A nurse is responsible if there are documentation errors. It is therefore important that patient's documents and charts may be complete and correct. Legal charges are high if charts are done inadequately and incorrectly (Westrick & Dempski 2009). A nurse may become involved in legal entanglements if he or she has no current certification and licensing. Practicing medicine and medical related fields is considered dangerous for the patient and can result in huge fines, and even imprisonment of the nurse or other medical staff . [...]
[...] W., & Dempski, K. (2000). Quick look nursing: Legal and ethical issues. Thorofare, N.J: Slack. Killion, S. W., & Dempski, K. (2006). Legal and ethical issues. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett. [...]
[...] This means that it is important to maintain a high standard of practice by following the nursing process, administering medications properly, monitor for and report deterioration of the patient and document in an accurate and timely manner. By adhering to such principles, it will be easier to meet the standards of nursing care in daily practice and avoid legal problems. References Westrick, S. J., & Dempski, K. (2009). Essentials of nursing law and ethics. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Killion, S. [...]
[...] Negligence is one of the causes which can entangle a nurse legally. It is assumed that patients are usually under the care of a nurse and failure to take an action that should have been taken is negligence. A patient has the right to expect a certain level of care which if not given or maintained can pursue a legal action to remedy the results of negligence which include; medication not administered, supervision not carried out and physical negligence of patients critically ill (Westrick & Dempski 2009). [...]
APA Style reference
For your bibliographyOnline reading
with our online readerContent validated
by our reading committee
