ethic 26
in a legal case of negligence, 1. rationale and excuses are balanced against implied damages. 2. a breach of duty has to be identified 3. the definition of duty has to be identified 4. standards of practice are not considered 5. injury has to clearly be identified 6. injury has to be clearly connected to the negligent act
2, 3, 5, and 6 only
as a radiographer positions an elderly patient for an upright abdominal view. the patient is asked to stand up from his wheelchair. as he does so, the wheelchair moves out from under him, and he falls to the floor. as the technologist attempts to break his fall, a coworker notes that the wheel locks on the chair were left unlocked. in this situation,
a breach of duty has occurred
the term res ipsa loquitur means the
thing speaks for itself
all of the following are necessary for a legitimate case of malpractice except a. a clear definition of duty b. proof of damages c. a clear illustration of one's breach of duty d. third-party testimonial as the inappropriate acts of the defendant
third-party testimonial as the inappropriate acts of the defendant
which of the following is not legal right of a patient in the radiology department? a. to know of alternative diagnostic studies b. to refuse the ordered radiographic examination c. to be informed of the possible risks d. to ask for and receive extra studies
to ask for and receive extra studies
a claim that someone has been wronged or sustained injury is called
tort
touching a patient on the symphysis pubis for a frontal thoracic spine projection
could be viewed as battery
a technologist who has completed a procedure on a patient leaves the area grumbling, "i hate to do AIDS patients because I am afraid of catching the disease." a member of the housekeeping staff hear the technologist and asks who the AIDS patient is so he can pass the information along to his coworkers for safety reasons. the technologist responds by giving the patient's name and room number. after the incident, housekeeping personnel refuse to clean the room. one person from housekeeping tells the story to members of the housekeeper's church, where the patient is also a church member. after learning of the patient's condition, the church asks the patient to not to return to church. what type of complaint might be brought against the technologist?
defamation
at a recent professional meeting of radiographers, an attendee stands up at a business meeting and states that the chairperson uses excessive radiation and violates ALARA daily. the person making these statements would be committing an act of
defamation
the doctorine of respondeat superior states that the
employer is responsible for employee's actions
fastening a patient into a confining, immobilization device that they question, for a simple wrist radiograph can be viewed as
false imprisonment
placing a child in a Pigg-O-Stat without the parent's permission may warrant
false imprisonment
which of the following is false regarding informed consent? a. the patient must be competent to sign b. for accuracy, medical terms specific to the procedure should be used c. the physician named on the consent form is the only physician who can perform the procedure d. any condition stated on the consent form must be met
for accuracy, medial terms specific to the procedure should be used
your department has received a new piece of digital radiographic equipment. a radiation physicist has inspected the unit and determined that the automatic exposure control function is not operating properly. his report indicated this clearly and is submitted to the department director. this new equipment has been expected for weeks and is the only device in the department capable of performing certain examinations. the director insists that the device is completely safe, and technologists need to use it while applications' training is on site. in this situation, who is responsible for taking corrective action?
hospital and director
a process by which patients can agree to be treated or refuse to be treated based on information provided by the radiographer about the examination is called_____ consent.
informed
getting a speeding ticket from a state police officer on an interstate highway would be a violation of
legislative law
written defamation of a person is termed
libel
it has been estimated that about 10% of all medical claims of negligence involve
medical imaging
acceptable informed consent for a simple breast biopsy a. does not need a tissue-disposal clause b. is the same as implied consent c. must be witnessed by someone not involved in the procedure d. should state that the procedure is similar to an abscess drainage
must be witnessed by someone not involved in the procedure
the legal doctorine of res ipsa loquitor to shift the burden of proof from the plaintiff to the defendany (technologist). it implies that the patient was injured through no fault of his or her own while in the complete control of another. an example of this is a... a. patient marking the wrong body part for an arthrogram b. patient "ripping" her bandages off after surgery because they are painful c. patient's skin being torn as he is transferred from a cart to his bed d. patient saying something very crude during surgery in a state of anesthesia
patient's skin being torn as he is transferred from a cart to his bed
when negligence occurs to a patient, who is responsible for proving injury? a. an expert witness b. plaintiff c. a reasonable and prudent practitioner d. defendant
plaintiff
in a legal proceeding, the actions of a radiographer will be judged with regard to his or her compliance with the
practice standards for medical imaging and radiation therapy
it is the duty of any health care practitioner, including medical imaging personnel, to a. safeguard all patient rights and autonomy b. retain from giving patients uncomfortable information about an impending exam, in order to protect their fears c. provide all patients dosage values for all x-ray studies before the exam has started d. all of the above
safeguard all patient rights and autonomy
defamation of a character by speaking poorly of an individual is
slander
as you begin a barium study of the colon, the patient states clearly that she wants the examination to stop. a professional imaging technologist should
stop the barium, drain as much of it as possible from the patient's colon, and conclude the examination
as you perform a mammogram on an anxious patient, she asks you to stop the breast compression and examination because it is getting painful. your responsibility as a professional is to
stop the examination at her request and submit the images you have completed
if the threat of bodily harm were to occur to a patient as a result of reckless conduct by the health care provider, this would be deemed
assault
what type of complaint can be filed by patients if they feel they have been touched without permission?
battery
which of the following is an example of negligence? a. delaying a procedure until an interpreter arrives b. radiographing the wrong body part c. making a patient wait in the reception area until a radiologist is available d. recording in the patient chart the family's reaction to examination results
radiographing the wrong body part
as you position an adult patient for a skull examination, you being to position a shadow shield attached to the x-ray tube assembly to protect the patient's thyroid from exposure. while you are doing so, the lead shield falls and hits the patient in the throat. you apologize, and nursing case is administered to the patient. eventually, the patient's voice changes, and he contends that the accident led to his throat damage. in the court proceedings, his attorney claims negligence and used the principle of
res ipsa loquitor