Author Question: In the following list, identify the instances of possible malpractice. (Select all that apply.) ... (Read 64 times)

magmichele12 · **on:** Jul 17, 2018

In the following list, identify the instances of possible malpractice. (Select all that apply.)

a. The nurse accidentally administers an excessively large dose of a prescribed medication, and the patient becomes comatose.
b. The nurse runs a red light en route to work and causes an auto accident in which three people are seriously injured and one dies.
c. The nurse notes the patient's poor capillary return distal to a cast, becomes busy and does not report it, and the patient later loses limb function.
d. The nurse discusses a patient's condition in a disparaging way in a hospital elevator and is overheard by the patient's husband.

Question 2

Individual A has worked as an LPN/LVN for a year. The agency where she works discovers that the registration document she presented at the time she was hired was altered to remove the name of the rightful registrant and show her name instead.

What are the possible outcomes of this situation? (Select all that apply.)

a. The state board of nursing, when notified, will charge the nurse with fraud and deceit.
b. The agency will terminate the employment of the individual.
c. The agency will notify all patients for whom the individual cared to determine injury.
d. The individual will be arrested for misrepresentation.
e. The individual's license to practice will be revoked.

Jmfn03 · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 17, 2018

Answer to Question 1

ANS: A, C
Medication errors and failure to communicate important information, resulting in harm to the patient, are common sources of malpractice. Running a red light en route to work and causing an auto accident in which three people are seriously injured and one dies would be considered negligence, because the nurse is not engaged in the practice of the profession while driving to work. Discussing a patient's condition in a disparaging way in a hospital elevator and being overheard by the patient's husband would be considered slander.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: A, B
Obtaining the registration of license document and changing the name on the document so that one may represent herself as a nurse when she is not is fraudulent behavior. The agency will terminate the individual's employment, because she cannot continue to work as an LPN/LVN. The agency would not notify all patients for whom the individual cared to determine injury. Arrest would occur only if criminal charges are filed. The individual does not hold licensure, so revocation cannot occur.