Discussion Question:
• Are there areas in which advanced nursing practice is making more of an impact than others? Do these correspond with the primary purposes of advanced nursing practice?
OR
• What are the most common potential legal liabilities for nurse administration and nurse managers in health care settings? How can these areas of potential liability be minimized or avoided?
This module begins by outlining the relationship between state nursing practice acts, entry into professional practice, educational issues, and scope of practice issues relevant to nursing and advanced nursing roles. The legal constraints to advanced professional practice encountered by nurses educationally and clinically competent to perform these roles will be explored. This module explains key concepts underlying nursing management, including supervision of others, the temporary reassignment of nurses to units other than those which they have primary expertise, and cases involving HIV patients and nurses from a nursing management perspective. Lastly, this module explores the concepts of delegation and supervision and the legal liabilities that can ensue.
This module began with an overview of nurse practice acts, licensure, and the scope of practice. Credentials, proof of the qualifications of individuals, include both licensure and certification. Each state has a nursing practice act and an administrative board of nursing that regulates registered and practical nursing practice. Professional nursing organizations and licensing boards offer certification for nurses in advanced clinical practice roles and advanced nursing practice. The major legal challenges involving advanced practice nurses have centered on scope of practice, standards of care, and malpractice issues. Legal issues that must be addressed in the future if advanced practice nurses are to be allowed to fully practice include issues directed at reimbursement, prescriptive authority, admitting privileges, and direct access to patient populations.
In the area of management, it is important to remember that nurse-managers are both employees and employers. As a manager, the nurse has an obligation to be aware of pertinent laws and litigation that may affect what managers may or may not do. As employees, nurse managers have many of the same rights as staff nurses. The effective manager will balance these two concepts to enhance patient care delivery. Finally, the module concluded with a focus on the legal aspects of delegation and supervision. The concept of delegation has evolved into allowing a variety of unlicensed assistive personnel to perform multiple nursing care tasks under the direct supervision of licensed professionals. These unlicensed caregivers assume the responsibility for the tasks performed, but not the accountability for the task. This module concluded with an exploration of the potential legal liabilities pertaining to the expanded concept of delegation, and presented a means of effectively delegating tasks from a legal perspective.
Module Goals
Differentiate among various types of licensure, including mandatory, permissive, and institutional
Articulate the process for creating state boards of nursing and their authority, including limitations on their authority
Analyze the legal constraints to advanced professional practice, including scope of practice, malpractice, standards of care, and prescriptive authority
Compare and contrast the doctrines of respondeat superior, vicarious liability, and personal liability from a nursing management perspective
Define the issues concerning temporary staffing from the aspect of legal liability
Differentiate delegation from assignment and supervision
Evaluate the role of unlicensed assistive personnel in relationship to professional accountability
Learning Materials
Required Resources:
Guido, G. W. (2020). Legal and ethical issues in nursing (7th ed.). Prentice Hall. ISBN: 9780134701233. Read Chapters 12, 13, 16, & 17.
Additional Resources:
Guido:
Ch 12: Nurse Practice Acts, Licensure and the Scope of Practice
Ch 13: Advanced Nursing Practice Roles
Ch 16: Nursing Management and the Nurse Manager
Ch 17: Delegation, Supervision and Selected Patient Advocacy Issues
In the healthcare industry, nurses play a vital role in providing care to patients. As a result, they are held to high standards of care, and nurse administrators and managers are tasked with ensuring that their staff are compliant with regulatory requirements and adhere to the best practices in patient care. However, in performing their duties, nurse administrators and managers are exposed to potential legal liabilities. This paper examines the most common potential legal liabilities for nurse administration and nurse managers in healthcare settings and discusses strategies for minimizing or avoiding these areas of potential liability.
Common potential legal liabilities for nurse administration and nurse managers:
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