Nursing Malpractice

A nurse provides medical assistance and attention in order to save a person’s life or comfort an ailing person. It is extremely unfortunate that a lot of malpractices have crept into the nursing profession. These malpractices had adverse effects on sick people and have even resulted in putting the patient’s like at stake.

Nursing malpractice involves neglect on the part of a professional nurse that harms the patient physically or mentally. There are various cases that can be considered as nursing malpractices. Some of them are listed below:

• Wrong records.
• Wrong medication.
• Errors during surgery.
• Errors during the delivery of the child.
• Neglect while assessing.
• Wrong diagnosis.
• Delay in treatment.
• Delay in informing the doctor about the state of the patient.
• Wrong usage of a medical instrument.

Statistics show that there has been a manifold increase in the nursing malpractice cases. Legal provisions have been established in order to minimize such malpractices and eradicate them in due course of time. There are four essential steps involved in proving a case of nursing malpractice. Firstly, the neglect of the nurse while serving the patient needs to be proved. It must be proved that the nurse did not provide the basic care that should have been provided by a nursing professional in general and also that this neglect has led to the damage the patient has incurred. Secondly, it has to be proved that the alleged nursing personnel had accepted to take care of the patient who has been harmed and who is filing the case or for whom the case is being filed. Thirdly, it must be verified that the damage that the patient has incurred has been primarily caused by the neglect of the accused nursing professional. Finally, the kind of damage that has been caused to the patient needs to be defined. There could be various types of damages like impairment, aches and afflictions, abnormality, increase in the required medical assistance, financial losses or even demise.

Legal help may be easily availed of in cases of nursing malpractices. The patient or the relative of the deceased patient can file a suit against the nurse who has caused the damage. The person filing the suit can demand compensation from the accused nurse on event of the malpractice being proved. The suit needs to be filed before the lapse of a specific time period. However, the legal actions taken may vary from place to place depending on the law of the state. The claim would also vary depending on the relevant situation in the case. It is best to consult a legal profession at the earliest in order to take proper legal steps against the malpractice.

The nurse involved also has a say in the matter. It is not that filing a suit would invariably lead to the condemnation of the accused nursing professional. If the nurse can prove that he/she is not guilty of any kind of negligence, has met the nursing care standards and is not responsible for the damage caused, the nursing malpractice case will be nullified. However, the verdict should not be a case of injustice. Hopefully the various legal actions can help in doing away with the nursing malpractices and ensure more medical safety.