NUR 204 - Legal Issues and Reducing Errors (week 10)

Scope of nursing

It tells you what a nurse is legally allowed to do based on their state’s nurse practice act

Nurse practice act

A state law that determines both the way a nurse becomes liscensed and all of the tasks and duties that a nurse can perform.

Mandatory reporting

Nurses ar emandatory reporters (by law) of abuse of children, dependent adults, disabled, and elders

Both suspected and actual abuse and neglect must be reported.

Consequences for not reporting include liscensure revocation, fines, and jail time

Nurses do not have to prove or diagnose abuse, reasonable suspicion is required

Family violence and Covid 19

There has been an increase of abuse and family violence during covid 19.

Stressors included social isolation, financial stress, and pancemic related reduced support

Patient advocavy

Nurses must ensure the consent form is properly signed by the patient, witness, and filed or scanned, before administering blood products, diagnostic tests, etc.

Three signatures must be in place, the patient, physiciain, nurse as the witness

HIPPA

The health insurance protability and accountability act - federal law to protect patients from having their medical or helath informaiton shared without their knowledfe or concent.

Protect individuals health information

Breaching HIPPA can lead up to several legal penalties adn fines

Common occurances - misplace charts, losing electronic devices with records, mishandaling documents, chatting with others who do not have a right to know

Medication errors

An error that is assocaited with the preparation, distribution, and administration of an incrorect medication or an incorrect dosage of a medication

Adverse drug event

An error leading to an actual or potential injuru that is most liely associated with a surgical or medical scenario rather than with a patients underlying conditions

Adverse drug reaction

An unintended, undesired, and unexpected response or reaction that has negative outcomes related to the pharmalogical action of a medication

Medication misadventure

An inicident associated iwth medication erros that include adverse reactions due to an adverse drug event

Never event

A situation tha tleads to an error that shoul dnever happen

Root cause analysis

A procedure during which the uynderlying causative factor associated with amedical or medicaiton error is sought

Near miss

An event that could have caused adverse clinical outcomes but was caught in the process and corrected

Against medical advice

A voluntary depature form a health care setting and refusal of medical treatmnet against the advi e of the physician or primary care giver.

Omission

Generally occur when an action shoulkd have taken place and did not - failing to do the right things

Ensure the rights - error-prevention

Rights of medication administration are administered to the right patient, right medication, right dose, right route of admission, and right time

Perform accurate medication reconciliation processes anytime a patient is administered or transferred

Other ways to prevent errors

Do not take oral medication order, use a drug book, double check, use five rights, reduce distractions, conduct medication reconciliation