12: Legal Issues in Nursing – Flashcards
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civil law
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The branch of law that generally involves the protection of both the person and personal property, and is concerned with issues that arise between individuals or businesses.
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criminal law
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The branch of law that is designed to protect society from harmful and criminal acts of individuals.
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tort
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A violation of a civil law that results in personal injury or personal property damage. Most common violation of law in nursing practice
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assault
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An intentional verbal threat or an attempt to inflict physical harm on someone that results in a reasonable and present fear of immediate physical danger.
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battery
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Any unjustified and intentional application of force.
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abandonement
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In a health care context, most commonly refers to leaving a patient unattended; can also be charged if a health care professional begins emergency first aid at the scene of an accident and then leaves the scene before someone else arrives to take over.
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libel
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Defamation of character that occurs through printed statements, including written words, photos, or some other representation of the person.
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slander
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Verbal defamation of a person's character.
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false imprisonment
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The unlawful forced imprisonment or detention of a person. ex in nursing restraint
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MD order for restrain must include:
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type of restraint, reason for restraint, length of time the restraint is to be applied and criteria for restraint removal
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fraud
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An intentionally false statement made by one person to another with the intent to deceive the other person, usually for financial gain.
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invasion of privacy
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Violations of a person's privacy such as the use of one's name, picture, or even likeness for commercial or advertising purposes without specific written consent, or the unauthorized release of any data about patients' diagnoses and treatments.
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gross negligence
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Essentially, an act of negligence so extreme as to suggest total indifference to reasonable standards of conduct.
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malpractice
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Misconduct or improper practice by any professional or official that results in injury or harm; a particular kind of negligence.
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nurse practice act
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A state law that includes information about the boundaries of the scope of nursing practice, types of nursing licenses, licensure requirements, and grounds for disciplinary action and revocation as well as a definition of nursing.
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breach of duty
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A failure to act as a prudent professional, according to the standards of conduct established within a given profession.
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professional liability
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Means that professionals are under obligation to practice according to the standards of their profession.
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misdemeanors
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Crimes considered less serious than felonies. Punishment is often a fine Ex: theft of a patient's possessions and pushing a patient.
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felonies
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Crimes considered more serious than misdemeanors. Punishment can include: fines, incarceration or prison, loss of privilage such as a driver's license, or license to practice one's profession or a probationary period which usually requires some type of public service. ex falsification of narcotic records or research study, witholding life support from terminally ill patient, adm drug to hasten death.
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common law
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The law of a country or a state based on common customs and the various accumulated judicial decisions and opinions of law courts.
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case law
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Law based on previous decisions and judgments that have been made in courts of law; also called judicial law.
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statutory law
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The written body of established rules or enactments that have been passed and formalized by the legislative body of government.
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constitutional law
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Federal law based on the U.S. Constitution; the most authoritative type of U.S. law.
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enacted law
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The second most authoritative type of law, which is passed by various national, state, and local legislative bodies.
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regulatory law
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The third most authoritative type of law, which provide the rules and regulations governing the execution of enacted laws; also called executive or administrative law.
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party states
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States that honor the Nurse Licensure Compact, which established multistate licensure for nurses.
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remote party states
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Refers to party states other than the home party state of a nurse with multistate licensure.
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Commission on graduates of foreign nursing schools
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An agency formed to help foreign nurses negotiate the maze of requirements to which practicing nurses in the United States must conform.
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unlicensed assistive personnel
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Health care workers who are not specifically licensed to perform nursing tasks, though they are often trained and certified in various aspects of health care delivery.
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continuing education units
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Documentation of continuing education necessary for nurses to maintain their licenses in some states.
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sunset laws
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Laws written such that, if they are not reviewed and reauthorized within a certain time frame, they will no longer be valid.
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freedom of information act
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A law codifying a person's right of access to all federal agency records except those protected from disclosure by a set of nine exemptions or by special law enforcement record exclusions.
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omnibus budget reconciliation act
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Federal acts that appropriate federal funds for various programs. Includes specific regulations for facilities requiring medicaid and medicare funding, ex decrese use of restraints and id of potential donors.
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uniform anatomical gift act
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Law that protects institutions and individuals involved in organ procurement from liability as long as they are acting in good faith and are able to give the patient and the patient's next of kin accurate information about any donations.
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patient self determination act
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Legislation requiring facilities receiving federal Medicare reimbursement to inform patients about their right to refuse treatment and to ask patients to prepare an advance directive regarding their wishes concerning resuscitative efforts and the institution and withdrawal of supportive and life-sustaining therapies.
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american with disabilities act
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A law that ensures people with disabilities are not discriminated against and requires employers to find ways to reasonably accommodate people with disabilities.
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safe medical device act
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Federal legislation that was designed so that the FDA could quickly be informed of any medical product that has caused or is suspected to have caused serious illness, injury, or death.
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family and medical leave act
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Law ensuring that eligible Federal employees are entitled to a total of up to twelve work weeks of unpaid leave during any twelve-month period for reasons relating to health care and child care.
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needlestick safety and prevention act
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A law that directed OSHA to revise the blood-borne pathogens standard to include a number of new initiatives aimed at minimizing the risk for health care workers.
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engineering controls
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Mechanisms designed to protect people.
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drug enforcement administration (DEA)
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A federal regulatory vested with governing controlled substances.
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comprehensive drug abuse prevention and control act
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A law passed to control the distribution and use of depressant drugs, stimulant drugs, and other drugs with the potential for abuse. ex documenting and counting narcs
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grievance
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A complaint that arises from any circumstance or condition of employment.
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practice standards
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The sets of criteria most employers have for their employees.
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respondeat superior
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A phrase meaning that once an employee has signed a contract to work for an employer, that employer is liable or responsible for the employee's actions performed in the scope of that employment.
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advance directives
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An umbrella term for various types of written legal documents that are prepared by people when they are mentally competent and preferably in good health.
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living will
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A legal document that includes specific instructions about various measures that may prolong and affect the quality of one's life.
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power of attorney
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A written statement and legal document that authorizes one person to act as a proxy or surrogate for another person under certain conditions.
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durable power of attorney
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A document relinquishing a person's decision-making capabilities about health care decisions to another person in the event that he or she becomes mentally or terminally ill or incapacitated and unable to make autonomous decisions. Able to make financial and personal decisions as well.
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health care proxy
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Similar in some ways to a durable power of attorney, but does not involve financial decision making and is generally less formal in nature.
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informed consent
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A state wherein patients are aware of all the procedures, proposed benefits, and risks of surgery or special procedures as well as the potential side effects from medications that might be used for treatments. Implied-verbal or behavioral. Expressed-written or signed
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DNR order
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An order that means that if a patient has a cardiac or respiratory arrest, no attempt should be made to revive the patient.
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National labor relations act
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A law that provides some protection for employees who raise complaints against employers for unfair labor practices in the private sector.
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Proof of malpractice for a nurse
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1. Duty: The nurse who is being sued must have been responsible for the care of the patient in some capacity. 2. Breach of duty: The nurse failed to provide acceptable care according to nursing standards of care. 3. Causation: The failure of acceptable nursing care caused the injury. 4. Injury: Harm must have occurred and be proved.
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4 types of practice standards nurses are to comply with
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the practice standards of the employing institution, the nurse practice act from the state that the nurse is licensed in, any regulatory agency standards, and standards from current nursing practice based on sound research.
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Grounds for nursing license revocation
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professional misconduct, conviction of a felony, or substance abuse.
