Nurse’s Legal Advisor

After completing this course you will be able to:

1. Describe the importance of obtaining proper consent from the patient prior to undergoing any procedure.
2. 1. Define proximate cause in the context of medical malpractice.
   2. Describe two essential elements that constitute a conduct which becomes the proximate cause of an injury.
3. 1. Describe what “a chance of survival” means in medical negligence cases.
   2. Describe the importance of reading and following patient progress charts and specific instructions of treatment.
4. Describe conduct that would constitute sexual harassment in workplace.
5. Describe the interrelationship between the standard of care and medical malpractice.
6. 1. Describe how faulty recordkeeping can lead to a finding of medical malpractice.
   2. Explain major pitfalls of charting by exception.
   3. List 3 essential elements to establish a prima facie case of medical malpractice.
7. Describe the importance of reading and following employee handbook, and the policies and procedures of the hospital.
8. 1. Describe the 3 essential elements of medical malpractice.
   2. Explain the importance of effectively communicating orders to assigned caregivers.
9. 1. Describe 3 elements of conduct that accord official immunity protection to public employees from liability.
   2. Differentiate between “ministerial” acts and “discretionary” acts of government employees.
10. 1. Explain the nursing code as it relates to the revocation of a nursing license, if the licensee is unfit or incompetent due to the use of alcohol.
    2. Describe 4 acts that would lead to the revocation of a nursing license.
11. Define public policy and list 4 elements that describe the duties of a professional registered nurse in the context of public policy.
12. 1. Differentiate between ordinary negligence and medical malpractice.
    2. Explain the consequences of unauthorized disclosure of patient records.
13. 1. Define the term battery in a medical setting.
    2. Describe wrongful death and wrongful living as they apply to legal liability for medical professionals.
14. Explain the principle of estoppel.
15. Explain how the constitution protects professional medical personnel when they speak out upon matters of public concern.
16. 1. Differentiate between professional ethics and personal moral convictions as they relate to the duties of a nurse.
    2. Explain the ANA code for nurses as it relates to a nurse’s refusal to treat patients.
17. Explain the duties of a health care worker in protecting the public from the actions of a mental patient under care.
18. Explain the significance of proper charting to avoid claims of medical malpractice.
19. List 8 circumstances that determine the status of a worker as an employee as against an independent contractor.
20. 1. Define vicarious liability.
    2. List 4 factors that would determine whether an employer is liable for the acts of an employee.
21. Describe how Good Samaritan statutes protect health care workers when they render treatment to an individual in an emergency.
22. 1. Describe how worker’s compensation laws protect a worker in the event of an injury in the course of employment.
    2. List 4 exceptions to the “going and coming” rule as applied to worker’s compensation.
23. 1. Define the “captain-of-the-ship” doctrine.
    2. Describe the circumstances that would determine whether a nurse works for the hospital or for the physician.
24. Explain how proper charting could exonerate health care providers from medical malpractice.
25. Describe the responsibilities of a nurse to comply with the floating policy of a hospital.
26. Describe the rights of an employee against termination without just cause.
27. Describe how proper communication with a patient could avoid legal liability for the hospital.
28. Describe how the law protects health care providers from legal liability when they follow from the various recognized methods of treatment.
29. Explain the recommended course of action for a nurse when she observes a doctor doing something improper, something that is against the policies and rules of the hospital.
30. Define the legal principle of the statutes of limitations.
31. Explain how a hospital has a duty to make its equipment and premises safe for patients.
32. Explain the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act and list the classes of persons authorized to give consent in behalf of the decedent for donation of organs.
33. Describe the importance of providing a specially trained professional nurse to supervise for patient care.
34. Describe how the worker’s compensation law applies to a situation where a worker gets injured away from the workplace.
35. Explain how the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) protects a pregnant nurse against sexual discrimination.
36. 1. Explain how AFP testing is used to detect spina bifida.
    2. Describe the significance of obtaining informed consent and recording the consent in proper forms to avoid claim of medical malpractice.
37. Differentiate between the nursing services rendered by a nurse as opposed to the services rendered to a nurse, and their importance in protecting the privacy of a nurse.
38. Explain how Title VII prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, color, sex, religion or national origin.
39. 1. Define the tort of retaliatory discharge.
    2. Describe how the law treats moral convictions when they come to interfere in the discharge of nursing duties.
40. Define extreme and outrageous conduct.
41. Explain the notice requirements upon the occurrence of an injury with regards to worker’s compensation law.
42. Define the responsibilities of the emergency department in a hospital with respect to patients who are in need of medical service but are unable to pay for them immediately.
43. 1. Define foreseeable harm.
    2. List 2 factors that impose duty on a health care provider to control the conduct of a third person to prevent injury to patients.