In the course of their work, nurses may interact with the police in several different ways. They may be asked to respond to inquiries from police or provide a copy of a patient’s chart because they have assessed and treated patients who are alleged victims or suspected perpetrators of crimes. In some instances, a nurse’s…
Read MoreThis InfoLAW focuses on adults who do not have the capacity to give or refuse consent to treatment on their own behalf.
Read MoreConsent may be implicit or explicit. Holding out an arm to have a blood pressure taken is implicit consent, whereas an ECG or blood gases may require explicit consent. The main types of consent in the health care setting are general consent as required for admission to and basic care in a health care facility…
Read MoreMedication errors are a relatively common occurrence in nursing practice that can cause life-threatening complications for patients. According to a Health Report completed by Statistics Canada, “almost one-fifth (19%) of hospital-employed Registered Nurses acknowledged that over the previous year, medication errors involving patients who were in their care had occurred “occasionally” or “frequently”“.1 In fact,…
Read MoreNegligence is the failure or omission to provide care that a reasonable and prudent nurse in similar circumstances would have rendered. During their career, a nurse may be faced with a professional negligence allegation arising from their nursing practice from a current or prior patient. A negligence claim may be in connection to variety of…
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 MoreElectronic medical records (EMR) are now common to most nursing practices. To protect the privacy of patients’ personal health information, nurses should be aware of the unique privacy issues related to the use of EMR.
Read MorePlease note: In this document, “dispensing of medication” specifically refers to RNs dispensing medication in the absence of a medical order for the treatment of a specific condition(s) following the RN’s nursing assessment. In an effort to safely improve timely access to care for certain patient populations, an increasing number of Canadian provinces and territories…
Read MoreAll three levels of the Canadian government continue to be actively engaged in preparing for possible pandemic emergencies. The SARS outbreak in 2003, the H1N1 outbreak in 2009, and the 2020 declaration of COVID-19 as an international pandemic highlight the importance of nursing in controlling and containing communicable diseases. As nursing resources can become stretched during outbreaks, nursing regulators may consider whether there are enough nurses to meet the demand in their jurisdiction. Here are some elements to take into consideration when practicing during a pandemic.
Read MoreIn the ever-evolving landscape of the opioid crisis, nurses in various practice areas may find themselves providing care to patients with substance use disorders. This webinar will introduce attendees to some of the legal principles applicable in this context, with a specific focus on the nurse’s role in supporting dependent patients. The topics discussed will…
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