Introduction
This paper reviews the legal responsibilities of a nurse in a hospital as well as those of the employer. This results into further examination of the relationship between the nurse and the employer. A step down unit refers to a nursing unit in the hospital that provides care intermediate between that of a normally staffed inpatient division and an intensive care unit. A medication error is a health outcome that results when an unintentional error occurs either in dispensing, administration, prescribing or monitoring of a medicine when under the control of a consumer, a health care professional or a patient. The main objective of this paper is to identify who is responsible when a medication error occurs. Understaffing can result into a medication error due to high nurse-patient ratio and given this, the paper proposes that the employer should be responsible for proper staffing, with particular emphasis on reducing the nurse-patient ratio, therefore, minimizing the medication error.
Legal responsibility of the nurse
Nurses have several legal responsibilities. First they are responsible of their own acts such that whenever an error occurs due to their own actions, they bear the responsibility of the error. Nurses are also supposed to protect the rights and safety of the patients. (Covington, 2007). They also document and communicate information concerning client care. Nurses perform acts allowed by the nurse’s state nurse practice act, and they only reveal the confidential information of the client only to appropriate persons. (Guido, 2010). In addition, nurses only witness but do not obtain informed consent for procedures. Nurses are not supposed to carry orders that they believe to be harmful to the client. They are also expected to be loyal to their patient (Saunders, 2001). Loyalty to the patient carries with it the obligation to obey instructions. Finally, in order to prevent injuries to themselves and others, they restrain clients only in the emergencies. (Nurse’s legal reference, 2001).
Legal responsibility of the employer
The employer should provide a workplace that is employee friendly and that is free from hazards and meet the set standards, rules and regulations. The employer should also provide the necessary tools and equipment, and these should also be properly maintained. In addition, the employer has the responsibility of providing relevant training when required. (Fraser, 2005). An employer is also charged with the duty of ensuring that there is no discrimination of the employees who are exercising their work rights
Employers should also set up emergency plans, prevent and control exposure to such things that may result to damage of the employees’ health and avoid manual handling that involve dangerous work.( The ADA: Your Responsibilities as an Employer, 2000). Protective clothing should also be provided free of charge in case the risk can be removed or controlled properly. The employer should report accidents, diseases, injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences to the local authority and measures taken. The storage and handling of used materials is also the responsibility of the employer to make sure that they are safe. They are also legally responsible for risk assessment so as to spot possible health and safety hazards. This is made possible by assigning a competent person charged with safety and health responsibilities. The employer should also consult his/her employers in matters pertaining their safety and health at work which include changes such as different or new procedures, equipment or work. It is also the responsibility of the employer to provide medical insurance to the employees since this is a legal requirement and should be fulfilled.
The ethical issues
Ethics deals with the moral judgment and standards of conduct. Nurses work to enhance their client’s best interest and achieve maximum outcomes. They also work to avoid harm by maintaining a competent practice standards. Clients possess the right of self-determination and therefore decide what happens to them. Nurses must, therefore, respect the wishes of the patients even if they are not in terms. They should also treat their patients equally and fairly and avoid personal judgments to bias client care (Guido, 2010). Nurses should fully comply with set standards and should make their fellow nurses also to comply. (Bjarnason, & Carter, 2009). It was, therefore, the responsibility of the nurse to avoid medication error by carrying the duties assigned in a professional way and protecting the patient.
Conclusion
Every party plays a vital role in an organization such as a hospital. Both the nurses and the employer have legal responsibilities that they must observe and undertake while in the line of duty. Failure to do this will always result in errors. In this case under analysis, the error resulted due to high nurse-patient ratio. This was as a result of understaffing, something that employer was legally mandated to ensure that it did not happen. Therefore if I was in the disciplinary board I would rule in the favor of the nurse since the staffing responsibility is not his and I would recommend that more nurses be employed so as to reduce the nurse patient ratio to reduce errors.
References
Nurse’s legal handbook (4th Ed.). (2000). Springhouse, Pa.: Springhouse Corp.
Guido, G.W. (2010). Legal & ethical issues in nursing (5th Ed.). Boston Pearson.
Fraser, J.C. (2005). What Are the Legal Responsibilities of the Employer in Case of the Accidental Death of the Employees? The Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 160(8), 241-243
Covington, R.N. (2007) Moral and Legal Responsibilities of Surgical Nurses. Nursing Forum, 4(3), 19-26
Bjarnason, D., & Carter, M.A. (2009).Legal and ethical issues: to know, to reason, to act. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders.
Walter H. Saunders (2001). The Legal Responsibility of the Nurse. The American Journal of Nursing, 5(12), 860-873
The ADA: Your responsibilities as an employer. (2000). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
