Legal and Ethics in HC

Define the following terms:

  • Civil: Focuses on legal relationships between people and the protection of their rights.

  • Criminal: Focuses on wrongs against a person, property, or society.

  • Legal: Those that are based or authorized on the law.

  • Assault: A threat or attempt to injure someone.

  • Malpractice Insurance: Malpractice insurance is important because it protects HC providers/workers from financial downfall due to malpractice. It helps pay for awarded charges/fines and any legal costs due to malpractice. This protects the HC worker from financial consequences. 

  • What is the average amount a physician has to pay for malpractice insurance?

    The average amount costs $40,000 per year. But, OB/GYNs and surgeons pay anywhere from $100,000-200,000 a year.

Terms for a Contract

  • Offered: A competent person enters into a relationship with an HC provider and offers to be a patient.

  • Agent: The HC provider. A breach in the contract is malpractice/a tort.

  • Principal: The patient. Appoint to agent (HC provider) to advise them in making decisions about their treatment. Type of contract.

  • Accepted: The HC provider gives an appointment and treats the pt.

  • Denied: Not accepted.

Types of contracts:

  • Implied contract: Obligations that are understood without being verbally expressed terms

  • Privileged communication: All info given to a HC provider by pt must be kept confidential and only shared with other members of care. Can only be released with written consent. This DOES NOT apply to Birth/Death, Injury that needs police involvement, communicable diseases, STD’s.

  • Breached contract: A contract isn’t performed to the agreement.

  • Expressed: Spoken orally or in writing in clear language.

Terms/Torts:

  • Invasion of Privacy: Unnecessarily exposing an individual's private/confidential information without that person’s consent.

  • Informed Consent: Permission granted voluntarily by a person who is at sound of mind after a procedure and all the risks have been explained in terms the pt understands.

  • Abuse: Any care that results in physical harm, pain, or mental anguish.

  • Malpractice: Bad practice. The failure of a medical professional to use the degree of skill and learning commonly expected in that individual’s profession.

  • Assault: A threat or attempt to injure.

  • Libel: Written defamation.

  • Slander: Spoken defamation.

  • False Imprisonment: Restraining an individual's freedom.

  • Battery: Unlawful touching of someone w/out their consent.

  • Negligence: Failure to give care that is normally expected of a person in a particular position, resulting in unintended harm/injury to another person.

Privileged communication: All info given to HC workers by the pt. This must be kept confidential and only shared with other members of care. It can only be released with written consent.

Exemptions of privileged communication: Birth, Death, Injury caused by violence that is needed for police involvement, communicable diseases, and STDs. 

  • Durable Power of Attorney: AKA medical power attorney. This is a document that allows an individual to appoint another person to make medical decisions for them if they become unable to.

  • Euthanasia: Act/practice of painlessly ending a life if an individual is suffering from a painful or incurable disease.

  • Advanced Directive: Living will, Durable power of attorney, DNR. Legal documents allow people to state what medical treatment they want/don’t want if they become incapacitated or unable to express their wishes.

  • Wills:

  •  A living will is documents that allow people to state what measures should be taken if an illness becomes terminal to prolong or not prolong their life.

  • DNR: Legal document that states the pt doesn’t want to be resuscitated after a heart attack or respiratory arrest.

  • Those who cannot enter a contract are minors, mentally incompetent, unconscious persons, or if a person is under drugs that change their mental state.

  • Those who can sign a contract are people 18yrs or older, involved parties, HC professionals.

  • HIPAA - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. 

    • Has rules set in place for pt information confidentiality.

    • Privacy rule: Regulates the use and sharing of individually identifiable HC information.

    • Security rule: Mandates safeguards to maintain the privacy of individually identifiable Electronic Health Care Information.

    • These rules apply to insurance, billing, and health care providers.


  • Patients’s Bill of Rights: 

The factors of care a pt is expected to receive are as follows:


  1. Considerate/respectful care

  2. Obtain complete, current info concerning diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis.

  3. Receive info necessary to give informed consent.

  4. Refuse treatment to the extent of the law

  5. Confidentiality

  6. Reasonable response to a request for service.

  7. Obtain info regarding relationship of hospital to other institutions

  8. Right to refuse to participate in any research project

  9. Expect reasonable continuity of care

  10. Be allowed to review medical bills

  11. Be informed of hospital rules and methods available to resolve grievances.


  • Patient Self Determination Act

Federal law that establishes certain requirements of healthcare facilities.

  • Inform every adult of their rights

  • Provide assistance and info on preparing advanced directives and document in the chart

  • Affirm that there is no discrimination

  • Educate their staff on advanced directives