Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Tik Tok, YouTube, and LinkedIn allow us to communicate in real-time with “friends”, “followers” or the public. Nurses may use these sites as research and educational tools, for information sharing and as a way to network or socialize. Understanding the legal considerations involved in using social...
Read MoreQuestion: A nurse working in primary care receives a “friend” request on her Facebook site from someone with a familiar-sounding name. The picture accompanying the request is of a lakeside sunset, so she cannot tell who sent the request. Because the name sounds familiar, she accepts the request. After going through the requestor’s profile, she...
Read MoreFollowing protests against vaccination mandates that took place in the Fall of 2021 at various healthcare sites across Canada, the Criminal Code was amended to include the offence of intentionally taking steps to intimidate health-care professionals in specific circumstances. These changes came into effect on January 16, 2022. Section 423.2 now makes it a criminal...
Read MoreMobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets are powerful tools. When used in appropriate ways, these devices may generally help nurses communicate with colleagues and patients, as well as keep notes, research medications, monitor patient’s medical devices and aid in virtual care. While there are significant benefits that come with the integration of smartphones and...
Read MoreIn the nursing profession, patient advocacy is usually discussed within an ethical framework. Is there a corresponding legal duty? Canadian court decisions have recognized the existence of a legal nursing duty to obtain proper care for patients, even when this requires nurses to seek assistance outside the usual treatment team (i.e. by speaking to someone...
Read MoreTechnological advancement in the healthcare field, as well as the increase in virtual care or telepractice, has helped patients access safer, faster and more specialized care than ever before. However, these developments have also given rise to a multitude of new privacy issues, concerning loss of and unauthorized access to, use, and disclosure of a...
Read MoreA nurse may become involved in various legal proceedings. This infoLAW will focus on four legal proceedings: professional discipline, criminal actions, grievances/arbitration and civil actions. Whenever a nurse is involved in a legal action, they should reach out to CNPS to determine whether assistance is available to them and to discuss next steps. Nurses should...
Read MoreKey terms we use in this InfoLAW: Plaintiff: the person or the organization who filed a civil lawsuit against someone else. Defendant: the person or the organization being sued in a civil lawsuit. What is defamation? The courts have defined a defamatory statement as one “…which tends to lower a person in the estimation of...
Read MoreIn the face of scarce human health resources, amalgamation of health services, and changing demographics, some hospitals have made the difficult decision to close their emergency departments, temporarily or permanently. Communications to this effect would then be made widely to the public by the hospital or regional health authority. Consequently, emergency room staff could be...
Read MoreCNPS Core Services What types of core services does the CNPS provide? Please visit our core services page to learn more. What is occurrence-based professional liability protection? Under an occurrence-based model, the availability of protection depends on whether the protection was active when the incident giving rise to the claim occurred. For instance, in health...
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