Legal Risks for Defective Equipment

One of the important duty of the nurse is to make sure that the equipment used in treatments and in procedures is not defective.

Intentional Wrongs

A nurse may be liable for intentional wrongs. Intentional tortuous acts may arise in the performance of her duties.

Torts
- A tort is legal wrong, committed against a person or property independent of a contract which renders the person who commits it liable for damages in a civil action. Example of torts are:
a. Assault and battery b. False Imprisonment or Illegal Detention c. Invasion of Right to Privacy and Breach of Confidentiality d. Defamation

a. Assault and Battery

Assault is the imminent threat of harmful or offensive bodily contact. Battery is an intentional, unconsented touching of another person. It is, therefore, important that before a patient can be touched, examined, treated or subjected to medical/surgical procedures, he must have given a consent to this effect. If consent has not been secured, the person performing the procedure may be liable for battery.

b. False Imprisonment or Illegal Detention

False imprisonment means the unjustifiable detention of a person without a legal warrant within boundaries fixed by the defendant by an act or violation of duty intended to result in such confinement.

c. Invasion of Right to Privacy and Breach of Confidentiality

The right to privacy is the right to be left alone, the right to be free from unwarranted publicity and exposure to public view as well s the right to live ones life without having anyones name, picture or private affairs made public against ones will.

d. Defamation
Character assassination, be it written or spoken, constitutes defamation. Slander is an oral defamation of a person by speaking unprivileged or false words by which his reputation is damaged. Libel is defamation by written words, cartoons or such representations that cause a person to be avoided, ridiculed or held in contempt or intend to injure him in his work.

Crimes, Misdemeanors, and Felonies

Crime is defined as an act committed or omitted in violation of the law.
Criminal Offenses is composed of two elements:
1. Criminal act 2. Evil/criminal intent

Conspiracy to commit a crime

- It exists if two or more persons agree to commit a felony and decide to do it. Persons who commit felony is either principals, accomplices and accessories.
Principals are those who take a direct part in the execution of the act; who directly force or induce others to commit it; or who cooperate in the commission of the offense by another act without which it would have not been accomplished.

Conspiracy to commit a crime

Accomplices are those persons, who not being principals, cooperate in the execution of the offense by previous or simultaneous act. To hold the person liable as an accomplice, it must be shown that he had knowledge of he criminal intention of the principal.

Conspiracy to commit a crime

Accessories are those, who having knowledge of the commission of the crime, either as principals or accomplices, take part subsequent to its commission by profiting themselves or assisting the offender to profit from the effects of the crime by concealing or destroying the body of the crime, or the effects or instruments thereof, in order to prevent its discovery or by harboring, concealing, or assisting in the escape of the principal of the crime, provided the accessories act with abuse of their public functions or are known to be habitually guilty of some other crimes.

Criminal actions
- Acts or offenses against public welfare. - This vary from minor offenses and misdemeanors to felonies. Misdemeanor is a general name for criminal offense which does not in law amount to felony. Punishment is usually a fine or imprisonment for a term of less than a year. Felony is a public offense for which a convicted person is liable to be sentenced to death or to be imprisoned in a penitentiary or prison.

Criminal Negligence
Classification: Reckless imprudence Simple imprudence

Criminal intent
- Is the state of mind of a person at the time when the criminal act is committed, that is, he/she, knows that an act is not lawful and still decided to do it anyway. Deliberate intent includes two elements without which there can be no crime. These are freedom and intelligence.

Classes of Felonies
Felonies are classified into degree of acts and execution: 1.Consummated 2.Frustrated 3.Attempt

Classes of Felonies
Felonies are also classified according to punishment: 1.Grave 2.Less grave 3.Light felony

Circumstances affecting criminal liability

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Justifying circumstances Exempting circumstances Mitigating circumstances Aggravating circumstances Alternative circumstances

Lack of Education is not mitigating in: 1.Rape 2.Forcible abduction 3.Arson 4.Treason 5.In crimes against chastity like seduction and acts of lasciviousness and 6.Those acts committed in a merciless or heinous manner

Moral turpitude is an act of baseness, vileness, or depravity in social or private duties which a man owes to his fellow man or to society in general, an act contrary to the accepted and customary rule of right and duty between men.

Murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with intent to kill.

Homicide is the killing of a human being by another. It may be committed without criminal intent, by any person who kills another, other than his father, mother or child or any of his ascendants, or his spouse, without any of the circumstances attendant the crime of murder enumerated above being present.

Abortion. The term abortion is the expulsion of the product of conception before the age of viability. In law, any person who, with the intention of prematurely ending a pregnancy, willfully and unlawfully does any act to cause the same guilty of procuring abortion. Article II Section XV protection of the life of the unborn from conception.

Infanticide is the killing of the child less than three (3) days of age. The mother of the child who commits this crime shall suffer the penalty of imprisonment ranging from two (2) years, four (4) months, and one day to six (6) years.

Parricide is a crime committed by one who kills his/her father, mother or child whether legitimate or illegitimate, or any of his/her ascendants or descendants or his/her spouse.

Robbery is a crime against a person or property. The taking of personal property of a person from him or in his presence constitutes a robbery.

Controlled substances. Republic Act 6425 known as the Dangerous Drugs Act of 1972 covers the administration and the administration and regulation of the manufacture, distribution, and dispensing controlled drugs. Persons authorized to prescribe or dispense these drugs are required to register and have a special license for this purpose.

Simulation of Birth, Substitution of One Child to Another, or Abandonment of Legitimate Child

Simulation of birth is a crime committed by one who enters in a birth certificate a birth that do not occur. Substitution of one child for another or concealing or abandoning any legitimate child with intent to lose such child to lose his/her civil status shall be punishable by simulation of birth by prison mayor and a fine not exceeding one thousand pesos.

Points to Observe in Order to Avoid Criminal Liability

Be very familiar with the Philippine Nursing Law Beware of laws that affect nursing practice At the start of your employment, get a copy of your job description, the agencys rule, regulations and policies Upgrade your skill and competence Accept only such responsibility that is within the scope of your employment and your job description

Points to Observe in Order to Avoid Criminal Liability

Do not delegate your responsibility to others Determine whether your subordinates are competent in the work you are assigning them Develop a good interpersonal relationship to your coworkers, whether they be your supervisors, peers or subordinates Consult your superiors for problems that may be too big for you to handle Verify orders that are not clear to you or those that are seem to be erroneous

Points to Observe in Order to Avoid Criminal Liability

The doctors should be informed about the patients condition Keep in mind the value and necessity of keeping an accurate and adequate records Patients are entitled to an informed consent

Wills
- It is a legal declaration of a persons intentions upon death. - Testamentary document

Decedent
- is person whose properties are transmitted through succession whether or not he left a will - a testator (if he left a will) Heir - Is a person called to succession either by the provision of will or by operation of law

Wills
Testate a person who dies living a will Intestate a person who dies without leaving a will Probate validation of a will in a court Administrator one who administer the provision of a will Holographic will a written will, dated and signed by the testator Nuncupative will an oral will

Nurses Obligations in the Execution of a will

The nurse should note: The soundness of the patients mind That there is freedom from fraud or undue influence And that the patient is not minor For the protection of the nurse, she should make a notation on the patients chart on the mental and physical condition of the patient at the time of him making the will

Gifts
Four Legal requirement for a gift are: 1.The gift must consists of a personal property; 2.There must be an intention to make the gifts; 3.There must be an indication of transfer of control over such property; and 4.There must be an acceptance by the recipient.

Legal Procedure and Trial

In trial, the judicial procedure is to ascertain facts by hearing evidence, determine which facts are relevant, apply the appropriate principle of law, and pass judgment. These procedures in lawsuit can be divided into commencement, pleading, trial, pretrial and execution.

Pleading a complaint or petition. This can also be called indictments. Pretrial Procedures an informal discussion between the judge and the attorney to eliminates matters not in dispute, agree on issues and settled procedural matters relating to the trial. Cases are often settled at this point. Trial facts of the case are determined during the trial. The principles of law relating to those facts are applied and conclusion as to liability is reached. The judge determines the facts and applies the law.

Commencement of the Action

The first step in the trial process is to determine what kind of legal action to take.

Witness
- Summoned by the attorney to appear and give testimony on the time and date ordered

Appeals
An appellate court reviews the case, and when the case is decided by it, the final judgment results and matter is ended.

Execution of Judgment
Generally, lawsuits against hospitals or physicians and nurses involved recovery of money damages. Failure to obey will be regarded as contempt of court and will result in fine or imprisonment.