legal and ethical aspects in nursing
TRANSCRIPT
LEGAL AND ETHICAL
ASPECTS IN NURSING
Prepared by SALMAN
Law may be defined as “the principles and regulations established in a community by some authority and applicable to its people whether in the form of legislation or of custom and policies recognized by judicial decision
CRIMINAL LAW CIVIL LAW
LAW
A tort is a civil wrong or injury for which the court provides a remedy in the form of money damages (black ,1999)
Intentional torts Unintentional torts
TORT
Nursing standards of care are the legal guidelines for minimally safe and adequate nursing practice
Written policies and procedures of an employing institution defines the standards of care for nurses at that institution
NURSING STANDARDS OF CARE
ASSAULT BATTERY FALSE IMPRISONMENT FRAUD
INTENTIONAL TORTS
Assault is any intentional threat to bring about harmful or offensive contact with another individual, no actual contact is necessary
Eg. threatening a patient to give an injection
Restrain a patient for an x-ray procedure when the patient has refused consent
ASSAULT
Battery is an intentional touching without consent ,the contact is harmful to the patient and causes an injury , or it is merely offensive to the patient dignity
Eg. Giving an injection without patient consent
A patient gives consent for left knee repair but the surgeon performs right knee surgery
BATTERY
Making a person stay in pace against is wishes is false imprisonment
Eg. Restraining or confining a patient to a locked room without proper consent could constitute false imprisonment
FALSE IMPRISONMET
Fraud is a willful and purposeful misrepresentation that could cause or caused harm to a person or property
Eg. giving incorrect information to obtain a better positon or job
FRAUD
NEGLIGENCE MALPRACTICE
UNINTENTIONAL TORTS
Negligence is conduct that falls below the standard of care
Malpractice is one type of negligence called professional negligence
NEGLIGENCE & MALPRACTICE
Medication errors that result injury to patient
Burns caused by equipment or spills of hot liquids
Falls resulting in injury to patientsErrors in sponge ,instrument ,needle, count
in surgery casesFailure to give adequate report , notify
physician, adequate monitoring the patient
COMMON SOURCES OF NEGLIGENCE AND MALPRACTICE
INFORMED CONSENT Informed consent is a patients agreement to allow something to happen, such as surgery based on a full disclosure of risks, benefits alternatives and consequences of refusal (Black, 1999)
DOCUMENTATION EXECUTING PHYSICIANS ORDER GOOD SAMARITAN LAW PATIENT EDUCATION PRIVILEGED COMMUNICATION
LEGAL SAFEGAURDS FOR NURSES
INFORMED CONSENT
Informed consent is a patients agreement to allow something to happen, such as surgery based on a full disclosure of risks, benefits alternatives and consequences of refusal (Black, 1999)
CONFIDENTIALITY ADVANCE DIRECTIVE advance directives are legal documents stating the
wishes of individuals regarding health care in institutions in which they are no longer capable of giving personal informed consent
types; living wills durable power of attorny
AUTOPSIES
LEGAL ISSUES RELATED TO NURSING
ORGAN AND TISSUE DONATION In India 5,00,000 people die because of
non availability of organs per year and 1,50,000 people await a kidney transplant but only 5,000 get one 10 lakh people suffer from corneal blindness and await transplant (Times of india)
Types; live donation cedaveric donation
Contd.
The transplantation of human organs act, 1994
an act to provide for the regulation of removal, storage and transplantation of human organs for therapeutic purposes and for the prevention of commercial dealings in human organs and for matter connected with it.
transplantation of human organs bill 2013
INDIAN LAWS AND REGULATIONS RELATED TO HEALTH RELATED TO MEDICAL SURGIAL NURSING
Medical termination of pregnancy act -1971 The prenatal diagnostic techniques act and
rules
Related to obstetrics and gynaecology
Narcotics drugs and psychotropic substances act 1985
Mental health act ,1987
Laws Related to mental health nursing
Consumer protection act Prohibition of sexual harassment of women
at workplace bill,2010 Biomedical waste (management and
handling) rules,1998
some common laws affects nursing
ETHICAL ASPECTS IN NURSING
The word ethics derived from the Greek term ethos, which means ‘customs`
Ethics can be defined as a branch of philosophy that involves systematizing , defending and recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct, often addressing deputes of moral diversity(wikipedia)
ETHICS
1. Autonomy2. Beneficence3. Nonmaleficence4. Fidelity5. Justice6. veracity
ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
It involves the right of self-determination or choice, independence and freedom
Eg;the purposes of the preoperative consent is to assure in writing that the health care team respects the patients independence by obtaining permission to proceed
AUTONOMY
This principle promotes taking positive, active steps to help others
Eg; a child immunisation causes discomfort during administration but the benefits of protection from disease both individual and for society,outweigh the temporary discomforts
BENEFICENCE
It refers to the fundamental agreement to do no harm
Eg;
NONMALEFICENCE
It refers to the agreement to keep promises , commitments ,responsibilities that one has made oneself and others
Eg; if you assess a patient for pain and then offer a plan to manage it, this principle encourages you to do your best to keep the promise to improve the patients comfort
FIDELITY
Telling the truth or intentionally decieving or misleading patient
Eg; should you tell the truth when you know that it might cause harm to the client?
families go to great lengthens to protect a dying patient from the harsh truth of his prognosis ,and the patient himself may not wish to know
VERACITY
It refers principle of fairness It implies equal treatment of all clients
Eg ;a national multidisciplinary committee strives for fairness by ranking recipients according to need, rather than resorting to selling organs .
JUSTICE
Code of ethics is defined as `a specific set of professional behaviours and values the professional interpreter must know and abide by including confidentiality, accuracy, privacy, integrity.
CODE OF ETHICS
An ethical dilemma is a situation in which a choice must be made between two equally undesirable actions
ETHICAL DILEMMA
1. STAFF SHORTAGE2. CULTURAL AND RELGIOUS SENSITIVITY3. DELEGATION4. TRUTH TELLING VS DECEPTION
ETHICAL PROBLEMS IN NURSING
Knowledge of staff nurses regarding legal and ethical responsibilities in the field of psychiatric nursing
A study to assess knowledge ,attitude and practice of nurses regarding legal and ethical concepts of nursing care of children in nicu and picu of selected hospitals in chennai.
Nurses responses to ethical dilemmas in nursing practice ;meta analysis
RESERCH STUDIES RELATED TO LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES IN NURSING
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