Exam 5: Legal Principles in Nursing

The nurse is caring for a patient who attempted to get out of bed and fell to the floor,causing a fractured hip.The nursing supervisor asks the nurse to rewrite her entry into the patient's chart to show that the patient's bed was lowered to the floor even though it was not.What is the best action of the nurse?

The nurse is frustrated with an agitated patient and tells him "Now stay in that bed or I will make you stay there!" Which tort has the nurse just committed?

When is the nurse covered by the health care agency's malpractice insurance?

The nurse cuts an unconscious patient's long hair in order to wash and brush it.The patient wakes up and is very upset after seeing the short hair.Which tort did the nurse commit?

The nurse is caring for a patient who climbed out of bed and fell to the floor.What will the nurse do in regard to the incident report?

Which situation will enable a nurse to use restraints?

The patient suffers a large hematoma at the site after arterial blood gases (ABGs)are drawn by the respiratory therapist.Which statement is appropriate to enter in the patient's chart?

The patient undergoes surgery for a herniated disk and is paralyzed afterward.What must the patient prove to the court in order to win a malpractice lawsuit based on lack of informed consent?

Which actions by the nurse violate the American Nurses Association's Social Media Policy?

The nurse is caring for a patient who will have surgery.The nurse witnesses the patient sign the informed consent document,and then the nurse adds her signature as a witness.What does the nurse's signature on the document mean?

Which patient scenario allows the physician to perform needed procedures without the need to obtain informed consent first?

The nurse is caring for a preoperative patient before hysterectomy surgery.The patient tells the nurse that she plans to have lots of children in the future and is glad that the surgery won't keep her from getting pregnant in the future.Which is the best action of the nurse?

While at the grocery store,the nurse witnesses another shopper collapse near the checkout.The nurse performs CPR and the patient survives after being treated at the hospital.The patient later attempts to sue the nurse for malpractice because several ribs were broken as a result of chest compressions.Why will the patient's lawsuit be thrown out of court?

The patient sued the hospital for malpractice after developing a postoperative DVT and PE.The nurse's notes did not state that TED hose and sequential compression devices (SCDs)were applied even though they were ordered.Why did the court rule in favor of the patient in the case?

The nurse has received an order to administer warfarin 100 mg PO today to the patient.This amount seems high to the nurse.Which are the appropriate actions of the nurse?

The home care nurse suspects that the patient's bedsores are due to neglect from family caregivers.Which is the appropriate action of the nurse?

The nurse filled out an incident report after a patient fall but makes no mention of the incident report in her notes in the patient's chart.What is the reason for this?

Which description of the state Nurse Practice Act is correct?

A nurse wants to follow nursing standards of care.Which document should the nurse follow?

The nurse is directed to take an unsafe patient assignment.What is the most appropriate first action of the nurse?