DISCUSSION 1Nursing profession is one of the most sensitive and crucial courses that an individual may choose to pursue. Other than meeting the required examination requirement, nurses are also supposed to uphold standardized nursing practice while performing their duties to avoid possibilities of malpractices that are likely to develop while fulfilling their tasks (Davis, 2014). On that regard, there are various legal implications that have been structured to ensure that nurses adhere to their standard of practice. Thus, as far as the nurses will be required to combine their skills, competence, experience, and education to address the concerns of their patients, they should also be careful not to suffer from then underlying legal implications of not adhering to standardized nursing practices (Sheldon, 2016).
Nurses who do not adhere to standard nursing practices suffer the risk of losing their operating licenses. Perhaps, an individual who desires to become a registered practical nurse is substantially required to sit for the National Council Licensure Examination for you to be presumed eligible to operate as a nurse (Neil, 2015). Consequently, the core objective of establishing Licensure is to protect the members of the public from undesirable harm from incompetent nursing practices. Thus, the nurses will be required to have primary education or rather operational competence and continuation of education for them to be granted Licensure. Thus, failure to adhere to the standard nursing practice can make the nurses to lose their operational licenses (Bruce, 2016).
Far from that, nurses can also face jail terms fines for failure to adhere to the underlying standard care (Sheldon, 2016). Consequently, nurses are always obliged to uphold high degree of professionalism and integrity in the provision of care to their patients. Thus, the fact that all nurses are subjects to standard practice means that they face legal implications should they fail to adhere to the specifications of their duties. More specifically, just like other professions, nurses can also enhance the chances of facing jail terms by failing to adhere to the laid down rules and regulations that are incorporated into their standard of practice (Neil, 2015).
DISCUSSION 2
Nursing malpractices are primarily the sets of nursing care interventions that are likely to interfere with the quality of the services that are offered to the patients. For instance, nurses are supposed to attend to all their patients regardless of underlying disparities (Bruce, 2016). Failure to do so is described as a nursing malpractice. Consequently, health disparities refer to the general burden of illness, injuries, or disabilities that are associated with certain groups of people in the community compared to their counterparts. For instance, poor people are more susceptible to receiving poor health care services compared to their rich counterparts who are subject to better healthcare treatments (Neil, 2015).
Far from that, providing patients with wrong medication can also be described as a nursing malpractice. Nurses should adhere to standardized nursing care practices as well as evidence based practices while attending to their patients at all time to avoid the possibilities errors and other malpractices (Sheldon, 2016). For instance, nurses should always conduct comprehensive healthcare assessment and analysis of the health conditions of their patients before providing them with treatments. They should also apprehend competent care alongside the use of both their professional and educational experience to attend to improve the outcomes of their patients (Davis, 2014).
Proving patients with treatment without establishing the full health conditions is also regarded as a nursing malpractice. It should be noted that the core purpose of ascertain the health conditions of the patients before providing them with medications is always to cultivate a healthy platform form making rational judgment and interventions that are fundamentally helpful (Sheldon, 2016). However, assuming the conditions of the patients and providing them with particular medications without having substantial evidence about their health conditions can affect the quality of services that patients deserve. Far from that, failure to uphold confidentiality of the patients alongside not adhering to the scope of nursing practice can all be described as nursing malpractices (Neil, 2015).
DISCUSSION 3
The core differences that exist between various nursing malpractices are essentially associated with optimal nursing care and the transition of nursing knowledge in nursing contexts and hospital environments (Davis, 2014). Consequently, a nursing workforce that is built on nurses with higher levels of education has better patient care performance if they are to compare with a nursing workforce with nurses who have attained a relatively lower levels of education. Besides, nurses with quality and higher education are less prone to making medication and treatment errors making them more reliable in contrast to their counterparts with lower nursing education. There is a conclusively higher patient satisfaction in a higher education nursing environment compared to a lower education nursing environment (Bruce, 2016).
In addition to that, failure to go beyond the pre-defined standardized nursing practices to boost the quality of services that are provided to the patients is also a stumbling block in creating an environment where nursing malpractices has no room (Neil, 2015). It should be noted that nursing profession is continuously evolving and not unless nurses commit themselves at alleviating the state of things, it will not be easy to do away with cases of nursing malpractices. Perhaps, having difficulties in trying to relate nursing education to the field experiences is one of the core causes of healthcare malpractices. Therefore, engaging the nurses in the development of healthy nursing interventions and research practices will always prove to a major breakthrough in the creation of nursing environment where healthcare malpractices are not entertained (Davis, 2014).
- Bruce, R. (2016). Opinion: Adhering to Standards of Care Helps Manage Risk. Available at http://www.the-rheumatologist.org/article/opinion-adhering-standards-care-helps-manage-risk/
- Davis, C. (2014). The importance of professional standards. Available at http://journals.lww.com/nursingmadeincrediblyeasy/Fulltext/2014/09000/The_importance_of_professional_standards.1.aspx
- Neil, C. (2015). How Following the Standard of Care Can Get You Sued. Available at http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/840853
- Sheldon, C. (2016). CAN ADHERING TO A “STANDARD OF CARE” PROTECT YOU FROM A LAWSUIT? Available at https://www.aclsonline.us/articles/can-adhering-to-a-standard-of-care-protect-you-from-a-lawsuit/
