Legal Concepts, Ethical Issues Chapter 2 - Nicola
What is defined as "fear of being touched"
Assault
What is defined as "physical touch"
Battery
Instruments left inside a patient is referred to as ...
Retained instrument
Tort equals
Action
Tort Law equals
To avoid in future - to fix or avoid
What organization created the "Time Out"
WHO
An intentional tort requires proof of the willful action of the
following three elements
1. The defendant’s action was intended to interfere with the
plaintiff or plaintiff’s property.
2. The consequences of the
act were also intended.
3. The act was a substantial factor in
bringing about the consequences.
Who can witness an informed consent:
Physician
RN
CST
Other allied health employee
H&P
History & Physical
Examples of federal law
HIPPA
3 types of law
Common Law
Statutory Law
State Law
Common Law
Evolves and continue to evolves
Scope of Practice (to follow)
What is taught in the program can be performed)
Standard Precaution
Treat everyone like they have everything
Which type of law is classified by - statues, principles, and regulations
State Law
Negligence can be summed up by:
Omission or not doing
Malpractice can be summed up by:
On purpose misconduct
Applies only to that particular case
Case law
Any civil wrong independent of a contract
Tort law
Willful and violate the civil rights of a patient
Intentional Torts
Obligation to do or not do something
Liability
Professional misconduct that results in harm to another
Malpractice
Omission (Not doing) or doing something that a reasonable person
would do under the same condition - associated with the phrase
"departure from standard care"
Negligence
"above all, do no harm"
Primum non nocere
"The thing speaks for itself" harm obviously came from
itself from a given act of a sole defendant
Res ipsa loquitur
Assault and battery
Defamation
False imprisonment
Intentional infliction of emotional distress
Invasion of privacy
Examples of Intentional Torts
Patient misidentification
Performing an incorrect procedure
Foreign bodies left in patients and patient burns
Falls or
positioning errors resulting in patient injury
Improper
handling, identification, or loss of specimens
Examples of Unintentional Torts
Who gives the patient this definition "A person who receives
health services from a health care provider and who gives consent for
the provider to provide those services"
The Joint Commission (informed consent)
"A person who receives health services from a health care
provider and who gives consent for the provider to provide those services"
Consent for surgery - A basic right
Direct verbal or written statement granting permission for treatment
Expressed consent
Circumstances exist that would lead a reasonable health care provider
to believe that the person, or patient has given consent, even though
no direct verbal expression has been received - action of silence -
like there is no DNR present so the surgeon will try to resuscitate
Implied consent
Categories of consent
General and special
Consent for treatment in its broadest form
General consent
Consent given for higher than normal risk - surgical procedures
Special consent
Who has the final responsibility for securing written informed
surgical consent
The surgeon
Information must be understandable
There can be no coercion or
intimidation
Proposed surgical procedure or treatment must be
explained
Potential complications must be explained
Potential risks and benefits must be explained
Alternative
therapies and their risks and benefits must be explained
Characteristics of informed consent
What is never the preferred consent option
Implied consent
What may the surgeon be liable for unless it can be proved that good
judgment was used when unexpected conditions were encountered and
surgery was performed with implied concent
Battery
Expresses a patient’s wishes about the kinds and amount of medical
treatment that will be provided
Examples: living will and
durable power of attorney
Advance Directives
Emphasized collaboration between patients, physicians, and hospitals
is essential
Patient's Bill of Rights
The general rights and responsibilities of health care legislation
are reflected in the:
Patient Care Partnership formerly Bill of Rights
To perform surgery without consent is to be liable for the charge of:
Battery
Replaced Patient’s Bill of Rights
Contains plainer language
Patient Care Partnership
Developed for prevention, monitoring, and control of areas of
potential liability - enhance safety
Risk Management
Technology: best weapon
Examples: bar-coded medications,
identification strips, handheld wireless devices, and computer drug
order-entry systems
Prevention of medical errors
Requires medical device users to report incidents that suggest
probability of adverse reactions
The Safe Medical Device Act 1990 (FDA)
What can help reduce the risk of contamination of blood-borne
pathogens from sharps and percutaneous injuries
Establishing a neutral zone
Risk management Factors
Detection, Evaluation, Prevention
Established in 2003 to protect patients medical records and other
health related information
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
What is good for the individual and for society
Establishes the
nature of duties that people owe themselves and one another
System of moral principles and rules
Definition of Ethics
Dictates codes of conduct
Guide to behavior
Definition or Morality
Guides for ethical decision making benevolence, trustworthiness, and
honesty, concern, respect, refusal to take unfair advantage etc are
the foundation of what?
Moral Principles
What makes a “right act” right?
To whom is moral duty owed?
What “kinds” of acts are right? are the elements of what?
Ethical Decision Making
All personal religious & cultural beliefs need to be checked at
the door in order to make an unbiased:
Ethical decision
What provides Surgical Technologists guidelines on how to behave
morally and ethically?
1985 AST Code of Ethics
Formal process by which qualified individuals are listed in a registry
Registration
Recognition by an appropriate body that an individual has met a
predetermined standard
Certification
Legal right granted by a government agency in compliance with statue
that authorizes and oversees the activities of a profession
Licensure (Nursing)
Contributes to protection of the public by assessing educational programs
Accreditation
Surgical Technology Programs are accredited by
CAAHEP
Examining board for surgical Technologists
NBSTSA
Method of pretrial discovery in which questions are answered under oath
Deposition
Even though this is not a part of the medical record, what
contributes to part of the medical record?
Surgeon's preference card
What kind of report constitute much of the information used by the
hospital in risk management
Sentinel event (or incident report)
Professional duty limits based on state and federal law and on an
individual’s education and experience
Scope of Practice
Health institution may be found negligent for failing to ensure that
an acceptable level of patient care was provided. Screen staff/monitor performance
Doctrine of Corporate Negligence
The system of law concerned with private relations between members of
a community rather than criminal, military, or religious affairs
Civil Law
Voluntary statement of facts sworn before an authority to be true
Affidavit