If a patient is injured due to this kind of mistreatment, the hospital is liable, and the nurse may receive discipline, possibly suspension. However, the plaintiff (the patient) may also choose to file a law suit against the individual nurse as well (Giordano, 2003)
Nurses are necessarily at the front line of clinical care, therefore, they often have the basal responsibility to monitor and recommend treatment, or call a physician when conditions worsen. In most of the literature (Stencel, 2006; (Bernzweig, 1996), lack of adequate budgets and staff are blamed for a large majority of these cases
Thus, the core concept for nurses and the professional and non-professional people they interact with, "care" is one of the fields least understood terms, enshrouded in conflicting expectations and meanings. Although the caring model may vary among cultures, caring is universal and timeless at the human level, transcending societies, religions, belief systems, and geographic boundaries, moving from Self to Other to the community and beyond, affecting all of life and the ability for nurses, as well as patients, to self-actualize and assist in the healing process (Earp, French and Gilkey, 2007)
S. cases would never make it into the legal system (Epstein, 2009)
Each employee hour, improperly managed, has the potential of costing the hospital upwards of $50-60 when taken in full consideration of time, training, taxes, delays, etc. Consider if each department simply made this type of error once per week in a hospital with only 30 departments; the figure would quickly add up to a potential $100K per annum with only a minimal mistake, and certainly no positive affectations on the individual client (Fabre, 2005, 180-2)
For instance, the defendant may be held negligent for another person's suicide, but not responsible for damages after this -- an exception is made for physicians. Further, simply by allowing a patient access to suicide producing products can, in some cases, be seen as malpractice (Giannini, Gianinini and Slaby, 1989)
Patient advocacy is another role that the modern nurse assumes when providing quality care. Advocacy is the active support of an important cause, supporting others, or speaking on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves (Kozier, Erb and Blais, 1997)
The study is not without its critics, of course, and the challenge comes in what one can define as preventable death. The conclusions reached form the view that 50% of those who die while in the hospital may have lived longer had there been a higher standard of care applied (Loughran, 2004)
Malpractice insurance and awards that have helped to skyrocket costs are not possible in a health care system that is not set up as a profit-based system. Certainly, caps in damages can make a huge difference in the system, as can reforms that limit contingency fees, statutes of limitations, and require aggregious lapses in performance to actually litigate (Miller, 2006)
Despite this, there is a clear risk for the modern nurse, requiring them to carry appropriate insurance at all times. APPENDIX A -- Common Bases of Nursing Malpractice Lawsuits (Sharpe, 1999)
Standards and regulations for medical malpractice vary from country to country, sometimes even location to location, but in almost all countries medical professionals are required to maintain professional liability insurance to mitigate the risk and costs of legal actions in a malpractice situation. Nurses are not always required to carry malpractice insurance -- it depends on their location and degree of care (an OR nurse is more likely to need insurance than someone specializing in Osteology, for instance) (Sloan, 2008)
Nurses are necessarily at the front line of clinical care, therefore, they often have the basal responsibility to monitor and recommend treatment, or call a physician when conditions worsen. In most of the literature (Stencel, 2006; (Bernzweig, 1996), lack of adequate budgets and staff are blamed for a large majority of these cases
Most of the expense goes to litigation and there is a 50/50 chance the entire claim will be denied. The statistics are staggering: for every dollar spent on compensation, 54 cents when to lawyers, experts, and courts -- also bumping up premiums on all sides of the equation (Studdert, Mello, Phil, Gawande, et
The plaintiff, however, has a burden of proof prior to any other technical issues. In addition, because of the nature of the allegation, and the fact that normal members of a jury or judge cannot be expected to understand complext medical terms and procedures, expert witnesses are typically called -- usually for both sides (Uribe, 1999)
has to become a will, an intention, a commitment, and a conscious judgment that manifests itself in concrete acts. Human care, as a moral ideal, also transcends the act and goes beyond the act of an individual nurse and produces collective acts of the nursing profession that have important consequences for human civilization (Watson, 1988, p
has to become a will, an intention, a commitment, and a conscious judgment that manifests itself in concrete acts. Human care, as a moral ideal, also transcends the act and goes beyond the act of an individual nurse and produces collective acts of the nursing profession that have important consequences for human civilization (Watson, 1988, p
has to become a will, an intention, a commitment, and a conscious judgment that manifests itself in concrete acts. Human care, as a moral ideal, also transcends the act and goes beyond the act of an individual nurse and produces collective acts of the nursing profession that have important consequences for human civilization (Watson, 1988, p
32). With this is also the responsibility of communicating the idea of responsibility in health care between patient and system, and helping the patient understand that they have a duty to actively participate in their own process of wellness (Wright, Frey, and Sopory, 2007)