Prep U Questions Chapter 7: Legal Dimensions of Nursing Process

A nurse from the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) transports a client in the elevator with a nurse from the intensive care unit (ICU). There are staff members and visitors in the elevator as well. Which response from the ICU nurse is appropriate when the PACU nurse begins the report?

"Wait and give me a report in the room at the bedside."

The client being admitted to the oncology unit conveys wishes regarding resuscitation in the event of cardiopulmonary arrest. The nurse advises the client that it would be in the client's best interest to obtain which document?

A living will

Which is an example of an unintentional tort?

A nurse gives the client a medication, and the client has an adverse reaction to it.

A client is in a persistent vegetative state. The client has no immediate family and is a ward of the state. Under these circumstances, who will speak on this client's behalf?

A surrogate decision maker

Which process evaluates and recognizes educational programs as having met certain standards?

Accreditation

While walking down the hall, a nurse manager overhears a staff member telling a client, "If you don't stay in this chair and stop wandering, I'm going to tie you to it." The nurse manager pulls the staff member aside and discusses what was said. The nurse manager intervenes because the staff member's statement is which type of tort?

Assault

A nurse working on a busy medical-surgical unit does not take the vital signs of client who is preparing for discharge but instead documents the same vital signs obtained for this client earlier in the morning. For which tort would the nurse be potentially liable?

Fraud

A nurse working in a coronary care unit resuscitates a client who had expressed wishes not to be resuscitated. Which tort has the nurse committed?

Battery

The nurse is providing care to a client who had orthopedic surgery. The nurse has medicated the client for pain. However, the client reports that the pain is unrelieved. The nurse takes no further action regarding assessment and intervention for the client's pain. The nurse does not notify the surgeon regarding the client's pain. The nurse's failure to take further action represents which element of liability in this case?

Breach of duty

A client states that the client's recent fall was caused by his scheduled antihypertensive medications being mistakenly administered by two different nurses, an event that is disputed by both of the nurses identified by the client. Which measure should the nurses prioritize when anticipating that legal action may follow?

Document the client's claims and the events surrounding the alleged incident.

A nurse talks with family members about an AIDS client from the clinic where the nurse works. Which tort has the nurse committed?

Invasion of privacy

A client has a prescription for amoxicillin 500 mg P.O. every 8 hours. The nurse administers the medication via the intravenous route. Based on the nurse's action, the client develops complications and has an increased length of stay. The client files a lawsuit against the facility and the nurse. Which legal action has the nurse's attorney identified that meets the criteria for the client's lawsuit?

Malpractice

While caring for an infant, the nurse hears another child screaming in the next room and rushes there, forgetting to put the side rails up on the infant's crib. The nurse returns to the room to find that the infant has fallen out of the crib and sustained a head injury. Based on the nurse's action, which tort is the nurse liable for?

Malpractice

Which statement about laws governing the distribution of controlled substances is true?

Nurses are responsible for adhering to specific documentation about controlled substances.

A nurse, while off-duty, tells the physiotherapist that a client who was admitted to the nursing unit contracted AIDS due to exposure to sex workers at the age of 18. The client discovers that the nurse has revealed the information to the physiotherapist. With what legal action could the nurse be charged?

Slander

A nurse witnesses a traffic accident and dresses the open wounds sustained by a child. Later, in the hospital, the child develops complications from an infection in the wound. The family holds the nurse responsible for the complications and attempts to file a lawsuit. Which statement is true regarding how the Good Samaritan law applies to this case?

The Good Samaritan law will provide legal immunity to the nurse.

While at a coworker's house, a nurse discusses with the coworker a client whom the nurse suspects of physically abusing the client's child. The next day, the client is moved to another nursing unit after a surgical procedure and comes under the care of the coworker, who is also a nurse. The coworker confronts the client about the alleged physical abuse. The client is shocked and angered by the accusation and denies it categorically. What would be the charge if the client were to file a suit?

The first nurse could be charged with slander.

A client is being prepared for an elective surgical procedure and the consent form has not been signed. Who should the nurse have obtained consent for the procedure?

The health care provider performing the surgical procedure

Which best exemplifies malpractice?

The nurse administers amoxicillin to a client with known allergies to penicillin. The client has a seizure with resulting respiratory arrest.

A student nurse is assisting an older adult client to ambulate following hip replacement surgery when the client falls and reinjures the hip. Who is potentially responsible for the injury to this client?

The student nurse, the nurse instructor, and the hospital

A client newly diagnosed with congestive heart failure has a prescription for digoxin. The nurse counts the heart rate before administration of the medication and obtains a heart rate of 51 beats per minute. Which action by the nurse demonstrates adherence to the standards of nursing care?

The nurse withholds the medication and notifies the health care practitioner.

A nurse enters the client's room and finds the client lying on the floor experiencing a seizure. After stabilizing the client, the nurse informs the health care provider. The health care provider advises the nurse to prepare an incident report. What is the purpose of an incident report?

To evaluate the quality of care provided and assess the potential risks for injury to the client

Nurses complete incident reports as dictated by the agency protocol. What is the primary reason nurses fill out an incident report?

To improve quality of care

Professional regulations and laws that govern nursing practice are in place for which reason?

To protect the safety of the public

While a client admitted to the medical-surgical unit is in the radiology department, a visitor claiming to be the client's cousin arrives on the medical-surgical unit and asks the nurse to provide a brief outline of the client's illness. Which response by the nurse would be most appropriate, both legally and professionally?

"I cannot give you that information due to client confidentiality."

Which statement made by the nurse providing care to a group of clients indicates that the nurse requires further education regarding negligence?

"I don't need to assess distal pulses on a client after a femoral arteriography."

Which statements made by a nurse would indicate to a nurse manager that the nurse requires further training? Select all that apply.

"If I make a mistake, I will not tell anyone." "I will have the supervisor fill out the incident report when I make an error."

Action has been taken against a nurse's license based on a claim that the nurse acted outside of nursing's scope of practice. The nurse's attorney determines that the nurse needs more education about the purpose of the board of nursing when the nurse makes which statement?

"The rules made by the board of nursing don't reflect my practice."

Which scenario is an example of certification?

A nurse who demonstrates advanced expertise in a content area of nursing through special testing

An RN enters a client's room and observes the unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) forcefully pushing a client down on the bed. The client starts crying and informs the UAP of the need to go to the bathroom. What action is the RN witnessing that should be immediately reported to the supervisor?

Battery

Nurses practicing in a critical care unit must acquire specialized skills and knowledge to provide care to the critically ill client. These nurses can validate this specialty competence through what process?

Certification

In some cases, the act of providing nursing care in unexpected situations is covered by the Good Samaritan laws. Which nursing action would most likely be covered by these laws?

Emergency care for a choking victim in a restaurant

A nurse has applied soft wrist restraints to a client following endotracheal intubation. Documentation of which information is essential when using restraints on a client? Select all that apply.

Findings from client assessment, performed every 2 hours. Foley catheter draining clear yellow urine. 0.9 normal saline infusing intravenously at 100 mL/hr.

An HIV-positive client discovers that the client's name is published in a research report on HIV care prepared by the client's nurse. The client is hurt and files a lawsuit against the nurse. Which offense has the nurse committed?

Invasion of privacy

A nurse is caring for a client following endotracheal intubation. Before applying soft wrist restraints to prevent the client from pulling out the endotracheal tube, what is the most appropriate action of the nurse?

Obtain a medical order.

A client on a surgical unit asks for the nurse's opinion of the surgeon. The nurse says that the surgeon is rude and that the surgeon's clients always end up with infections. The nurse is at risk of being accused of which?

Slander

Legal safeguards are in place in the nursing practice to protect the nurse from exposure to legal risks as well as to protect the client from harm. What is an example(s) of legal safeguards for the nurse? Select all that apply.

The nurse confirms informed consent was give by the client to perform a procedure. The nurse educates the client about what to expect during the hospital stay. The nurse documents all client care in a timely manner.

A family brings the client to the emergency department in an unconscious state with a head injury. The client requires surgery to remove a blood clot. What would be the appropriate nursing intervention in keeping with the policy of informed consent prior to a surgical procedure?

The nurse confirms that the client's family has signed the consent form.

After reporting to work for a night shift, the nurse learns that the unit is understaffed because two RNs called out sick. As a result, each nurse on the unit must provide care for four acute clients in addition to the nurse's regular clients. Which statement is true for this nurse when working in understaffed circumstances?

The nurse is legally held to the same standards of care as when staffing levels are normal.

A client was admitted to a postoperative nursing unit after undergoing abdominal surgery. During this time, the nurse failed to recognize the significance of abdominal swelling, which significantly increased during the next 6 hours. Later, the client had to undergo emergency surgery. The lack of action on the nurse's part is liable for action. Which legal term describes the case?

Tort

A client with end-stage renal disease decides against further treatment and requests a "Do Not Resuscitate" (DNR) order. The DNR status is part of the change-of-shift report. The client stops breathing and a nurse begins cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The family is upset and makes a complaint to the charge nurse. The charge nurse appropriately identifies that nurse has committed:

battery.

When the nurse informs a client's employer of the client's autoimmune deficiency disease, the nurse is committing the tort of:

invasion of privacy.