Legal Implications

˜Sources of law: Legal guidelines that come from statutory, regulatory, and common law

˜Standards of care: Legal guidelines for defining nursing practice and identifying the minimum acceptable nursing care

Federal Statutory Issues in Nursing Practice

• 1. ˜Licensure˜
• 2. Good Samaritan laws
• 3. ˜Public health laws
• 4. ˜The Uniform Determination of Death Act
• 5. ˜Physician-assisted suicide

• 1. Torts
• 2. ˜Intentional
• 3. Quasi-intentional
• 4. Unintentional
• 5. Consent

Assault, battery, false imprisonment

Invasion of privacy, malice, slander, libel

Negligence, malpractice

• 1. A signed form required for all routine treatment, hazardous procedures, and some other treatments.
• 2. Provisions are made for deaf, illiterate, or foreign language clients

U.S Supreme Court ruled that there is a fundamental right to privacy, which includes a woman's right to have an abortion.

Some states require viability tests if the fetus is more than 28 weeks' gestational age.

• 1. You are liable if your actions cause harm to clients, as is your instructor, hospital, and college/university.
• 2. You are expected to perform as a professional when rendering care.
• 3. You must separate your student nurse role from your work as a CNA .

• 1. A contract between the nurse and the insurance company
• 2. Provides a defense when a nurse is in a lawsuit involving negligence or malpractice insurance
• 3. Nurses covered by institution's insurance while working

Legal problems occur if there are inadequate nurses to provide care

based on census load and client acuities

Nurses follow orders unless they believe an order is in error or harmful

A system of ensuring appropriate nursing care that attempts to identify potential hazards and eliminate them before harm occurs.

• 1. Identify possible risks
• 2. Analyze risks
• 3. Act to reduce risks
• 4. Evaluate steps taken