Ethical
What is the professional value:
"respect and support patient’s right to make
decisions"
Autonomy
Enacted by a state's legislature, this defines the nursing scope of practice
Nurse Practice Act
Veracity (ethical principles)
telling the truth
What does the ethical principle fidelity mean?
Keeping promises
T/F
Facility policy, procedure, and protocol supersede the information taught in nursing school
True, Nurses can be held legally liable if they don't follow the facilities rules
What is a tort
subject to action in a civil court with damages usually settled with money
(Crimes are more serious)
True/False
The nurse puts a restraint jacket on a client without the client's permission and without the physicians order. The nurse may be guilty of assault.
False. Battery is physical
4 elements of informed consent
- Disclosure
• Comprehension
• Competence
• Voluntariness
A document describing an incident that
results in actual or potential harm
Incident Report
Following a motor vehicle crash, a nurse stops and offers assistance. Which of the following actions are most appropriate? Select all that apply
1. The nurse needs to know the Good Samaritan Act for the state.
2. The nurse is not held liable unless there is gross negligence
3. After assessing the situation, the nurse can leave to obtain help.
4. The nurse can expect compensation for helping.
5. The nurse offers to help but cannot insist on helping.
Answer: 1,2,5
Rationale:
The nurse is subject to the limitations of state law and should be familiar with the Good Samaritan laws in the specific state. Gross negligence would be described by the individual state law. Unless there is another equally or more qualified person present, the nurse needs to stay until the injured person leaves. The nurse should ask someone else to call or go for additional help. The same client rights apply at the scene of an accident as well as those in the workplace.
4 elements that need to be proven to charge someone with nursing malpractice
- Duty: the nurse accepts responsibility for a patient
and establishes a nurse-patient relationship
• Breach: The standard of care was not met and harm was a foreseeable consequence of the action or inaction
• Cause: Injury was caused by the nurse’s breach
• Harm: Injury resulted in damages (economic,
emotional, pain and suffering, reputation, loss of
companionship, etc.)
What is:
"a detailed, written plan for performing a regimen of therapy. For example, the facility has a hypoglycemia protocol that nurses automatically implement when a patient’s blood sugar falls below a specific number"
Facility Protocol
Policy is expected course of action set by facility
Procedure is "Facility establishes their own set of procedures, official ways of completing a task"
What are the 6 ethical principles?
Autonomy (respect & support patient’s right to make decisions)
• Nonmaleficence (avoid causing harm, prevent harm)
• Beneficence (promote health and well-being or good dying)
• Justice (provide fair and non-discrimination care)
• Fidelity (keeping promises)
• Veracity (telling the truth)
Which of the following are nurses required to report? Select all that apply
A. suspected abuse of children, the elderly,
the disabled
B. gunshot wounds
C. dog bites
D. some communicable diseases
E. unsafe or illegal practices of
other health care team members.
What is:
"The standard of care was not met and harm
was a foreseeable consequence of the action or
inaction"
BREACH (element of nursing malpractice)