Medical Legal Hazards in Nursing

A decision in a case that leads to a new legal principle sets a precedent. However, a precedent set in one State does not set a precedent for another State. In addition, previous decisions can also be overturned if societal attitudes, public needs, or contemporary political thought change. In general, the common law follows the principle of stard decisis – „leave the decision in abeyance”. It is the legal principle that courts should apply previous decisions to subsequent cases involving similar facts and issues. As with other educational needs, nurses provide educational activities to clients, family members and other staff on legal issues that may affect the care they provide. Travel health professionals owe a duty of care to every patient who consults them. As part of this duty of care, there is a duty of care that must be approved by a reputable opinion in the field. In this way, differences in clinical practice and disagreements between practitioners are taken into account. If there is a reasonable opinion to support the course of action taken, it is likely that the skilled person has provided an appropriate standard of care. The duty of care begins at the beginning of the first consultation with the patient. Poor doctor-patient communication is generally recognized as a major cause of clinical neglect,5,6 but the consultation time available to conduct a full pre-travel risk assessment is very limited. As part of this consultation, it is the responsibility of the travelling physician to discuss the proposed itinerary and fully clarify the travel-related health risks that need to be addressed prior to departure.

Failure to do so may result in inadequate pre-travel counselling, inadequate vaccination and/or inappropriate vaccinations. Medical history and current medications should be thoroughly researched. This is especially important now that more people with multiple comorbidities are actively participating in international travel.7 A vaccination history must be established to ensure unnecessary vaccines are not administered. Before administering vaccines, a history of allergy should be confirmed, especially with egg allergy, such as yellow fever vaccination. Computer forensics experts help ensure that no digital evidence is overlooked and assist them at every stage of a forensic investigation or litigation, regardless of the number or location of computer sources. Forensic experts assist lawyers in their most complex and sensitive investigations or disputes related to electronic evidence. The purpose of voir dire (telling the truth) is to test the legal qualifications of jury members to serve as judges. Each party`s counsel has the right to disqualify potential jurors who are unfit to participate in a particular trial or who are disqualified because each counsel is entitled to 6 mandatory strikes that include counsel`s preferences for the selection of potential jurors. Misconduct is very similar to negligence, but it is more specific. Medical malpractice is a physician`s failure to follow recognized standards of practice, resulting in harm to the patient.

Generally, proof of non-compliance with recognized standards of medical practice requires the testimony of a person with expertise in the field of medical practice. Some states have special rules of evidence that apply to allegations of misconduct. A „common law system” is a legal system that gives the common law a great potential precedent because it is unfair to treat similar issues differently on different occasions. The precedent is called the common law and applies until future decisions. In cases where the parties do not agree on what the law is, a common law court reviews previous previous decisions. If a similar dispute has been settled in the past, the court is obliged to follow the reasoning of the previous decision (this principle is called stare decisis). However, if the court finds that the current litigation is fundamentally different from all previous cases (known as a „first impression”), judges have the power to legislate by setting precedents. After that, the new decision will set a precedent and bind future courts. As with other training needs, nurses assess academic deficits of clients and staff, as well as educational needs regarding legal issues that affect their care or care.

As a result of this evaluation, educational activities aimed at addressing the identified educational needs are planned, implemented and evaluated according to their effectiveness in meeting the identified educational needs. With the ever-changing and efficient technological environment related to health care, all patient care documentation is monitored more accurately, thoroughly and effectively by the federal government and all entities involved in the medical profession. It is important to always care for our patients as competent, trained and competent professionals and to document their care with honesty, integrity and accuracy. Protecting our patients` privacy rights in all areas of their healthcare is a top priority for our current healthcare system, which is strengthened and maintained by the development of stricter HIPAA regulations. Failure to comply with these standards can result in serious consequences/sanctions for all healthcare providers involved. Some of the legal terms you need to know are: Medico-legal risk awareness helps promote high standards of clinical practice. A prudent approach to informed consent, rigorous clinical notes, and ongoing professional development are important recommendations to mitigate the risk of clinical neglect. The adoption of these medico-legal recommendations will improve patient safety and optimize standards of care.

Nurses who are not aware of these legal issues can face significant consequences. While effects vary widely depending on the allegations, nurses may face the following: Tanga HY, medication diversion by the nurse, and nursing manager responsibilities: legal, regulatory, ethical, humanistic and practical considerations. JONAS Healthc Law Ethics Regul, Jan-Mar 2011, 13(1) p13-6 The battery is the offensive or harmful contact of any person without their express or implied consent. Many care tasks, such as administering medication or assisting a patient in the toilet, require proximity or physical contact with a patient. It is essential to know what the battery is and to ensure that you have obtained the necessary consent to perform your duties, as patients have the right to refuse help and treatment. All documents and forms of documentation are considered legal documents. The legal aspects of documentation, in addition to the legal requirements associated with confidentiality, include strict legal prohibitions on altering a record, deleting entries in the medical record, and falsifying documents. All medical interventions carry the risk that the patient`s condition after treatment will be worse rather than better. This does not mean that health workers acted negligently, provided they exercised due diligence.

March AL, Ford CD, Adams MH, et al. The Simulated Process: A Collaborative, Interdisciplinary Approach to Understanding Legal and Ethical Issues. Nurse Educ, March-April 2011, 36(2) p66-9 Autonomy: The principle of autonomy recognizes the right of patients to determine the implementation of their health care. This is increasingly recognized and valued, based on our belief and respect for an individual`s right to make informed decisions about medical health care. Autonomy has become more important because society recognizes and defines medical standards of care in terms of high-quality outcomes, which are the desire of the patient and not necessarily the desire of health professionals. This growing reliance on autonomy has manifested itself as a social response to the tradition that new technologies and treatment options can have to sustain life at all costs, as opposed to the patient`s right to die with dignity, comfort and respect. This medical ethic deals with the issues of well-meaning physicians. Health care is fraught with legal pitfalls that can have a significant impact on uninformed nurses. An accredited online Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN to BSN) program typically includes courses on the ethical and legal issues that arise in nursing.

Since professional requirements for caregivers include a legal and moral obligation to protect patient privacy and the obligation to provide mandatory reporting, it is important that they understand the particularities of health law.