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  • Essay / Law and Medicine in Health Care - 1886

    The law and how it is interpreted and followed in the administration of medicine is an important aspect that must be brought to the forefront. Simply put, law refers to social rules of conduct that are enforceable and are not meant to be broken. While the practice of medicine involves a myriad of systematic complexities that expose healthcare organizations to potential legal issues, healthcare leaders must establish procedural methods and policies to mitigate liability risk through implementing robust risk management programs. Failure to follow established laws, policies, and procedures can result in legal problems for both the organization and its employees (Brock & Mastroianni, 2013). As the project case study for this course shows, compliance with policies and procedures, as well as understanding of the law were ignored, thus triggering legal action against the healthcare facility and one of his collaborators. To fully understand and answer the questions required for this course project, I will analyze the information objectively using facts related to the law. The case information provided to HCA 302 students in the course project requires answering several questions regarding the conduct of nurses, whether or not the nurse is qualified for immunity, the level of evaluation and reevaluation that has been performed, the importance of documentation, and whether the change in patients' blood pressure warranted notification and communication to the physician. In reviewing the case presented, I have concluded that the nurse should not be shielded from liability on the basis that she is a public official. To better understand the reasoning of my answer, it is appropriate to approach the law as...... in the middle of the article ......the framework of their profession. While law and medicine present unique challenges to healthcare organizations, managers must ensure they understand and communicate applicable laws and policies to their employees. In addition, they should also be informed whether their state employs a common law doctrine of contributory or comparative negligence and whether or not a party who negligently causes injury to another is considered liable when the injured party himself has played a role in his own injury (Showalter, 2011). Finally, although the nurse in this case committed wrongdoing, the hospital was also held responsible for her actions. It is therefore essential that organizations fully understand the nature of existing relationships and how these relationships, once formed, create responsibilities which, if not properly fulfilled, can trigger a wave of unwanted legal action..