Legal Aspects of Nursing

Nurses have a lot of responsibilities, some which leaves behind legal implications.  As a nurse, it is important to become aware of the legal aspects that accompany provision of care in the healthcare industry (Pozgar, 2002). It has become evident that the more negligence cases there are in the field, the less the people who want to enter into the nursing field due to fear of legal implications and inventible suits that arise in the course of provision of nursing care. Legal issues in nursing have developed since the 1903 nursing registration was enacted and over the years, nursing law has evolved  to a thick book that need to be read and understood by  students, novice, and practicing nurses (Pozgar, 2002). As the number of Advanced Practice Nurses increase, nurses are also assuming more responsibilities. It ensures prompt identification of risk and liabilities that are involved in provision of nursing care.

Nursing law is therefore meant to assist nurses in decision making process to ensure that they avoid instances that can lead to legal suits. In addition, nursing law is meant to streamline provision of nursing care in such a way that nurses assume liability for medical malpractices.  Nursing law is therefore meant to protect both patients and nurses in provision of nursing care

Most nurses are familiar with the Tort Law. Tort Law can be defined as the law that mainly deals with nursing malpractices and negligence cases (Brent, 2001).  Many nurses are concerned with deep understanding of this law because it constitutes one the biggest fears in the medical fraternity.

It defines nurses' responsibility and liabilities as far as patient care is concerned. A Tort is defined as a wrongful act which is most likely to produce harm, whether it is intentional or unintentional. Nursing malpractice can therefore be defined as a type of Tort in which the standards of nursing care are not achieved.  Therefore, Tort law is the most common and familiar laws that nurses and other medical practitioners need to be familiar with to avoid incidences that may be regarded as medical malpractices and make them face legal suits (Pozgar, 2002).

In order to protect themselves from malpractice suits, nurses are obliged to take extra precaution during nursing care in their daily shift (Brent, 2001).  They must ensure accurate recording, documenting, and reporting on daily routines and decisions they make. This constitute one of the most common way in which  nurse make sure they are on track  in nursing care.  During their nursing education, nurse are made to understand that proper patient care does not only constitute making the right decision but also maintaining and organizing proper medical records and reports for their patients. A nurse who cannot provide written proof for the decision made describing how the decision was reached at may be charged with nurses' negligence and are at an increased risk of being prosecuted in a court of law.

Legal aspects of nursing are therefore important to any nurse. They are taught at school and every nurse is expected to uphold them throughout the nursing career (Brent, 2001). For one to be employed as a nurse academic and personal skills are very important but they do not surpass the knowledge in medical laws because they should be applied in case there is a misunderstanding or any challenge by a patient or from their family. Many people aspire to take up a nursing career but without the necessary legal knowledge that pertains to nursing, not many hospitals will be willing to hire them. Legal aspects of nursing are therefore important because they protect both patient and the nurse. They define the limits of nursing liability as far as malpractices are concerned and shield patient from nurse malpractices.

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