NURS 1130 Chapter Notes - Chapter 11: Medical Malpractice, Damages, Punitive Damages
Document Summary
Public law: enforces relationships between entities and the government. Criminal law: concerned with actions that are illegal based on court decisions. Private law: deals with issues among individuals. Civil law: focuses on wrongful acts against individuals and organizations based on contractual violations. Torts: category of wrongful acts, which may not have a pre-existing contract: negligence, assault and battery. Common law: created by the judicial system interpreting previous legal decisions. Statutes: laws created by the u. s congress. Medical malpractice: improper or negligent treatment of a patient by a provider which results in injury, damage, or loss. Defensive medicine: providers often order more tests and provide more services than necessary to protect themselves from malpractice lawsuits. Standard of care: state or national standard. Tort reform: many states gave had to review their malpractice guidelines. 3 ways a provider can establish a contractual relationship: Establishing a contractual relationship to care for a designated population.
