Chapter 7

A client being discharged from the hospital asks the nurse, "When I go visit my family out of state, should I take my living will with me, or do I need a new one for that state?" Which is the most appropriate response by the nurse?

"Take it with you. It is recognized universally in the United States."

Which nursing student would most likely be held liable for negligence?

A nursing student administers medication to a resident while working as an unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) at a local nursing home.

Defamation

Act of harming or ruining another's reputation

A client informs the nurse that the client wants to discontinue treatment and go home. Later, the nurse finds the client dressed to leave. Which action should the nurse take in this situation?

Let the client go after signing a document stating that the client is going against medical advice.

A nurse is reviewing the nurse practice act of the state in which the nurse is licensed. The nurse understands that this act was derived from which source of law?

Statutory

Nurses are occasionally asked to witness a testator's (person who makes the will) signing of a will. Which guideline is true regarding a nurse's role in witnessing a testator's signature?

Witnesses to a signature do not need to read the will.

tort

a cause of action in which one person asserts that a physical, emotional, or financial injury was a consequence of another person's actions or failure to act.

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

accreditation

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

A nurse fails to communicate a change in the client's condition to the physician. Which element related to proving malpractice has been met?

breech of duty

Having recently completed a specialty nursing program in neonatal care, a nurse is now preparing to leave the medical unit and begin providing care in the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The nurse has completed which process of credentialing?

certification

A client is scheduled for a colonoscopy. The nurse realizes immediately after administering medications to induce conscious sedation that the client has not signed the informed consent. If the nurse has the client sign the informed consent at this point, which element of informed consent would be violated?

competence

The nurse is providing care to a client whose condition has progressively declined. The nurse assesses and makes appropriate interventions as well as notifies the health care provider. Despite the nurse's efforts, the client expires. What element of liability has the nurse demonstrated?

duty

Credentialing

refers to ways in which professional competence is ensured and maintained.

Certification

process by which a person who has met certain criteria established by a nongovernmental association is granted recognition

During the admission assessment of a client with a suspected mandibular fracture, the client discloses to the nurse that the injury results from the client's spouse hitting the client. Which action should the nurse prioritize when responding to this disclosure?

reporting abuse

A nurse and the facility have been named as defendants in a malpractice lawsuit. In addition to the nurse's attorney, whom else would be appropriate for the nurse to talk with about the case?

the agency's risk manager

Licensure

to be given a license to practice nursing in a state or province after successfully meeting requirements

A nurse is caring for a client who has undergone coronary angioplasty. The cardiac monitor is showing abnormal electrocardiogram waves, indicating atrial fibrillation. The nurse does not recognize the importance of the sign; as a result, the client's condition deteriorates and the client has to be taken up for an emergency procedure. Which describes the nurse's legal liability?

tort