Why Liability Matters More Than Ever for Today’s Nursing Professionals

Liability is crucial for today’s nurses. Discover why awareness of professional risks and legal protection matters more than ever in modern healthcare practice.

Nurses often carry the burden of patients’ health and vulnerability in their own hands. Even one act of irresponsibility by a nurse can cause significant complications for both patients and the healthcare center. With more and more developments in the legal scheme of things, nurses today need to be extra careful to avoid negative legal repercussions as they go about their work each day. In this blog, we will explore why awareness of nurses’ professional liability is of utmost importance for nurses entering the healthcare industry in today’s times. Then we will go on to explore how nurses can stay cognizant of certain issues to ensure patient health and safety as well as minimize legal complications that may arise at their workplace.

Why nurses are more at risk today

Nurses play a very important role in patient care and safety. Every family that admits its beloved member to a healthcare facility has to invest a lot of trust in the nurse who is attending to the patient. However, while nurses help patients to heal and move towards recovery, they also face legal risks today, more than ever before. With the increased digitization and sophisticated forms of documentation penetrating the everyday healthcare operations today, the chances of legal issues cropping up have also increased. If a patient comes into any level of harm owing to a nurse’s irresponsibility or insincerity, the nurse can be held legally responsible for it.

Years ago, doctors were seen as the principal responsible party who could be sued for any medical errors made at a healthcare facility. Now, however, it is the nurses who handle a huge load of critical healthcare tasks, even in the absence of the doctors. From giving medicines to monitoring the vital signs of patients, a lot of sensitive information is handled by nurses. This is why they should be extra careful of liabilities at the workplace. Here are some of the key reasons why nurses today may face higher risks legally at the workplace –

1. Complex patient needs: Patients these days have more complex health problems. Many even have multiple diseases at once. As more workload falls on the nurses, it can create a higher possibility of making mistakes, which can turn out to be a serious liability in the long run.
2. Advanced technology: Modern hospitals usually operate high-tech devices and keep electronic health records. While this helps nurses to speed up and organize their work, it also adds some risks. Any mistakes made in data entry, machine use, or patient monitoring can culminate in serious legal repercussions.
3. More informed patients: In an age where news travels at lightning speed through social media platforms, patients and their families are much better informed about their legal rights. In case a nurse makes a mistake that costs the patient and their family, they can take serious legal steps against the nurse. If the legal proceedings go in the patient’s favor, the nurse may be fired, with even her license suspended. This is why it is important for nurses to ensure they remain in total compliance with healthcare policies and standards.

How nurses can protect themselves

While there are many risks involved in nursing as a profession, there are several steps that nurses can take to ensure that they stay well within the legal guidelines of their job. Here are some steps they can take to reduce legal risks while at work –

1. Knowing the law and policies: Nurses should be fully aware of the legal duties and policies of the hospital or clinic where they work. This helps them to stay within boundaries.
2. Keeping accurate records: Accurate documentation is the best backup for a nurse. They should write clear, complete, and timely notes and avoid tampering with or destroying records. This can protect them if they are questioned about their actions later.
3. Double-checking medicines: Medication errors are very common, but easily preventable. Nurses should always follow the five rights of medication: right patient, right drug, right dose, right route, and right time.
4. Respecting patient privacy: Nurses should never share patient details on social media or with unauthorized individuals. They should follow privacy rules like HIPAA(US) or other local laws valid in each country.

Conclusion

As the healthcare industry progresses fast with developing technology and enhanced administrative procedures, avoiding nurses’ professional liability becomes very crucial. To avoid legal repercussions at work, nurses should be extra-cautious of their day-to-day actions, set clear boundaries with patients, and comply with the policies of their workplace.