Ethical-Legal influences on APN
What Stephanie did was wrong because the medication could have harmed the patients. It was important for Stephanie to consult me or another healthcare professional. The medical professional could have diagnosed Ms. Smith and determined the real cause of her cough. Additionally, the fact that Stephanie used my name on the label of Mrs. Smith medication was wrong. Medical assistants have the responsibility of consulting with nurses or other healthcare professionals before taking the medical decision(Singh et al.,2014). Stephanie is a medical assistant, and she understands that patients are not supposed to be given medication without carrying out the needed diagnosis. Additionally, she acted without consulting her superior, and she used my name on the label without consulting me. The safety of the patients should always matter and health]care professional have the responsibility of ensuring that patients safety is enhanced. It is unethical and can be considered as wrong to provide patient with wrong medication.
At this point, legal action can be taken against Stephanie. She compromised the safety of the patients, and this could have harmed the patients. Medical malpractice is the legal action that can be taken against Stephanie. It refers to the negligence or omission by health procedure to provide the needed healthcare services by the standard practice or protocol(Rai & Acharya, 2013). Stephanie understood that patients need to be diagnosed before they are provided with the needed treatment. Providing patients with treatment before carrying out diagnosis is very wrong. It is against the standard protocol because you can’t treat what is unknown. Stephanie assumed or followed the requirements of Mrs. Smith, and it was wrong. Stephanie is the one with the medical knowledge and not Mrs. Smith. Taking legal action against Stephanie will show other healthcare professionals the need of taking their work seriously and following the instructions.
Reference
Rai, J. J., Acharya, R. V., & Dave, D. (2013). Knowledge and awareness among interns and residents about medical law and negligence in a medical college in Vadodara–A questionnaire study. Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences, 3(4), 32-8.
Singh, V. P., Bery, A., Biswas, G., & Aggarwal, A. (2014). Awareness about Consumer Protection Act and Medical Negligence among Private and Government Medical College & Hospital Faculty Members. Journal of Indian Academy of Forensic Medicine, 36(2), 150-155.
