IMPORTANT LEGAL

CONCEPTS FOR NURSING

Joanne P. Canicosa
LEGAL
ASPECTS

LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Republic Acts
RA 7164 - Philippine Nursing Act of 1991
RA 9173 - Philippine Nursing Act of 2002
RA 1080 - Civil Service Eligibility for those who passed
board and bar exams
RA 2328 - Philippine Medical Act
RA 8344 An Act penalizing the refusal of Hospitals and
Medical Clinics to administer initial medical
treatment and support in emergency cases
RA 1612 - Privilege Tax Law - professional tax payment
RA 5181 - Permanent residence and Reciprocity
RA 1082 - Rural Health Units all over the Philippines


LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Republic Acts
RA 4073 - Liberalizes leprosy treatment
RA 1054 - Free emergency medical treatments to
employees and laborers
RA 4226 - Hospital Licensure Act
RA 5901 - 40 hours/week for nurses in with 100- bed
capacity...
RA 3573 - Reporting of Communicable Diseases
RA 6111 - Medicare Act
RA 6675 - Generics Act of 1988
RA 6713 - Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public
Officials/Employees

LEGAL ASPECTS
LEGAL ASPECTS THAT AFFECTS THE NURSING PROFESSION

Board of Nursing

RA 877 - An act regulating the practice of nursing profession in the
Philippines
RA 4704 - Philippine Nursing Law, June 19, 1953
PD 223 - Creation of Board of Nursing
RA 7164 - Professional Regulation Commission has the power to
recommend nominee members of the board to the
President of the Republic, June 22, 1973
RA 9173 - New Nursing law by Gloria Macapagal Arroyo,
July 2, 2002 will be known as the Philippine Nursing
Act of 2002
LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Republic Acts

RA 6758 - Salary Standardization Law
RA 7305 - Magna Carta for Public Health Workers
RA 7277 - Magna Carta of Disabled Persons
RA 7624 - Drug Education Law
RA 6972 - Day Care Center for every barangay
RA 7160 - Local Autonomy Code
RA 7170 - Organ Donation
RA 349 - Legalized use of human organs for scientific
purposes
RA 6809 - Amended Article 34 of Family Code, 18 years is
majority age

LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Presidential Decree

PD 69 - Four children for tax exemption
PD 48 - Four children for maternity privilege
PD 965 - Family Planning and Responsible Parenthood
PD 442 - New Labor Code of the Philippines
PD 603 - Child and Youth Welfare Code
PD 626 - Employee Compensation and State Insurance
Fund
PD 1519 - Medicare Benefits for all government
employees
PD 1636 - Compulsory membership to SSS of self-
employed persons
LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Presidential Decree

PD 223 - Professional Regulation Commission (PRC)
PD 541 - Practice of profession in the Philippines by
former professionals
PD 651 - Birth Registration Law
PD 856 - Sanitation Code
PD 996 - Compulsory immunization of children under 8
years
PD 491 - Nutrition Program Law
PD 825 - Penalty for improper garbage disposal
PD 143 - Woman and Child Labor Law (no child below 14
shall be employed)
LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Executive Order


EO 51 - Milk Code
EO 209 - Family Code
EO 180 - Government worker's CBA
EO 857 - Compulsory Dollar Remittance Law
EO 174 - National Drug Policy (availability, affordability or
safe, effective, quality drugs)

LEGAL ASPECTS
LAWS AFFECTING NURSING PRACTICE

Board Resolution

No. 633 series of 1984 - ICN Code of Ethics
No.1955 s. 1989 - PNA Code of Ethics
No.1930 s. 1985 - CPE for Nurses
No.187 s. 1991 - Renewal of Professional license
No. 217s. 1992 - Delisting of delinquent professionals

Letters of Instructions

LOI 949 - Legal Basis of Primary Health Care
LOI 100 - Preference given to members of accredited
professional organization for employment and
seminars

LEGAL ASPECTS
PRONOUNCEMENTS

Nurse's Week - Last week of October
National Cancer Consciousness Week - Second week of January
International Women's Day - March 8
World Health Day - April 7
Earth Ray - April 2
National Health Worker's Day - May 7
World Red Cross Day - May 8
International Nurse's Day - May 12
World Diabetes Day - June 27
International Day for Drug Abuse and Child Trafficking - January 2
World Breastfeeding Day - August 1
World AIDS Day - December 1


RESPONSIBILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR
THE PRACTICE OF PROFESSIONAL NURSING

Nurses employed in an agency, institution or
hospital are directly responsible to their immediate
supervisors. Private duty nurses, being independent
practitioners, are held to a standard of conduct that
is expected of reasonable prudent nurse

WHAT IS LIABILITY? Is an obligation or debt that
can be enforced by law. A person who is liable for
malpractice is usually required to pay for damages.

Damages - refer to compensation in money
recoverable for a loss of damage.

PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE
NEGLIGENCE
Refers to the commission or
omission of an act, pursuant to a
duty, that a reasonably prudent
person in the same or similar
circumstance would or would not to,
and acting or the non-acting of which
is the proximate cause of injury to
another person to his property.
PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE
ELEMENTS OF PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE
1. Existence of a duty on the part of the person charged to
use due care under circumstances
2. Failure to meet the standard of due care
3. The foreseeability of harm resulting from failure to meet
the standard

4. The fact that the breach of this standard resulted in an
injury to the plaintiff

5. Errors due to family assistance

6. Administration of medicine without a doctors prescription
PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE
SPECIFIC EXAMPLES OF NEGLIGENCE
1. Failure to report observations to attending Physicians.

2. Failure to exercise the degree of diligence which the
circumstances of the particular case demands.

3. Mistaken Identity

4. Wrong medicine, wrong concentration, wrong route,
wrong dose.

5. Defects in the equipment such as stretchers and
wheelchairs may lead to falls thus injuring the patients.

PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE
CONDITIONS THAT ARE NECESSARY FOR THE
APPLICATION OF THE DOCTRINE:

1. The accident must be a kind which ordinarily does
not occur in the absence of someones negligence.

2. The accident must be caused by an agency or
instrumentality within the exclusive control of the
defendant.
3. The accident must not have been due to any
voluntary action or contribution on the part of the
plaintiff (injured party).

LEGAL DEFENSE IN NEGLIGENCE

The most common defense in a negligent action is
when nurses know and attain that standard of
care in giving service and that they have
documented the care they give in a concise and
accurate manner.

If the patients careless conduct contributes to his
own injury, the patient cannot bring suit against
the nurse.

PROFESSIONAL NEGLIGENCE
THE DOCTRINE OF RES IPSA
LOQUITUR

The thing speaks for itself
When the harm that resulted from
negligence and the responsibility for the
harm are clear that anyone would agree
on it, the term res ipsa loquitur is used
MALPRACTICE

MALPRACTICE
MALPRACTICE

Implies the idea of improper or
unskillful care of a patient by a nurse.
It also denotes stepping beyond ones
authority with serious consequences

MALPRACTICE
Elements of Malpractice

Duty to client - Owed to the client by nature
of employment and standards of care by
which the nurse must practice.
Breach of duty - A failure to meet the
standard of care owed to the client.
Causation - A direct relationship between
the failure to meet the standard of care and
the clients harm.



MALPRACTICE
Elements of Malpractice

Damages - It must be proved that the
client/patient has incurred harm through
the unsafe nursing practice.

Forseeability - The nurse must
recognize or have prior knowledge that
failing to meet a standard of care may
cause this type of harm to the
client/patient.




MALPRACTICE
EXAMPLES OF MALPRACTICE:
.
Misdiagnosis of an illness, failure to diagnose or relay
diagnosis

Birth Injuries

Surgical Complications

Prescription errors

Failure to provide treatment

Anesthesia related complications

Failure to follow advance directive

Failure of hospital or pharmacy to dispense the right medicine,
dosage

DOCTRINES
DOCTRINE OF
FORCE MAJEURE

It is an irresistible or superior force, one that
cannot be foreseen or prevented; a fortuitous
event, and act of God.
No person shall be held liable for
nonperformance of what was expected of
him/her if the cause of the nonperformance was
a force majeure (e.g. devastating typhoons,
earthquakes and other calamities)

DOCTRINE OF RESPONDENT SUPERIOR

Means let the superior answer; let the principal
answer for the acts of his agent
The doctrine is founded on the principle that he who
expects to derive advantage from an act which is done by
another for him must answer for any injury which a third
person may sustain from it.

The doctrine rests upon the proposition that, in doing the
acts out of which the accident arose, the servant was
representing the master at the time

DOCTRINE OF RESPONDENT SUPERIOR

EXAMPLES:

The hospital will be held liable, if, in an effort to cut
down on expenses it decides to hire underboard
nurses or midwives in place of professional nurses,
and these persons prove to be incompetent.

The surgeon will be held responsible in case a
laparotomy pack is left in a patients abdomen.

MALPRACTICE
Practice to Strive For

Best Practices for Reducing the Risk of Malpractice
Litigation:

I. Maintain good communication with the clients in your care.

II. Always keep your knowledge and skills up to date.

III. Follow and know your institutions policies and procedures,
and always pay close attention to your clients changing
health status.

IV. Always seek attention for a clients changing health status,
and question physician orders if they are unclear or not in
keeping with the clients condition.


INCOMPETENCE

INCOMPETENCE

Is the lack of ability, legal qualifications
or fitness to discharge the required duty.

Although a nurse is registered, if in the
performance of her duty she manifests
incompetency, there is ground for
revocation or suspension of her
certificate of registration.

LIABILITY OF NURSES FOR THE WORK OF
NURSING AIDES

Nursing aides perform selected nursing activities
under the direct supervision of nurses.
They usually given on-the-job- training by the
Training Staff.
Their responsibilities usually pertains to the routine
care of chronically ill patients.
They are therefore responsible for their own
actions.

LIABILITY FOR THE WORK OF
NURSING STUDENTS
Under the Philippine Nursing Act of
2002 R.A. 9173, nursing students do
not perform professional nursing
duties.
They are to be supervised by their
clinical instructors.

GUIDELINES TO AVOID MISTAKES OF
NURSING STUDENTS

1. Nursing students should always be under the
supervision of their clinical instructors.
2. They should be given assignments that are at
their level of training, experience, and
competency.
3. They should be advised to seek guidance
especially if they are performing the procedure
for the first time.
4. They should be oriented to the policies of the
nursing unit where they are assigned.
5. Their performance should be assessed
frequently to determine their strengths and
weaknesses
6. Frequent conferences with the students will
reveal their problems which they may want to
bring to the attention of their instructors or vice-
versa. Discussion of these problems will iron
out doubts and possible solutions may be
provided.

INTENTIONAL
WRONGS

INTENTIONAL WRONGS
A nurse may be held liable
for intentional wrongs


INTENTIONAL WRONGS
TORTS

A tort is a legal wrong, committed against a
person or property independent of a contract
which renders the person who commits it
liable for damages in a civil action.
A person who has been wronged seeks
compensation for the injury or wrong he has
suffered from the wrong doer.


INTENTIONAL WRONGS
EXAMPLES OF TORT:

ASSAULT AND BATTERY. Assault is an unjustifiable
attempt to touch another person or even the threat of doing
so while Battery is the actual carrying out of the threatened
physical contact

DEFAMATION of character occurs where a person
discusses another individual in terms that diminish
reputation. LIBEL is written defamation. SLANDER is oral
Defamation

False Imprisonment use of physical restraints.
Practitioners are liable for false imprisonment when they
unlawfully restrain the movements of their pts. Physical
restrains should be applied only with a physical direct order.


MEDICATIONS,
IV THERAPY AND LEGAL
IMPLICATIONS

MEDICAL ORDERS, DRUGS, AND MEDICATIONS

R.A. 6675 states that only validly registered medical,
dental, and veterinary practitioners, whether in private
institution/corporation or in the government, are
authorized to prescribe drugs.

In accordance with R.A. 5921, or the Pharmacy Act as
amended, all prescriptions must contain the following
information: name of the prescriber, office address,
professional registration number, professional tax receipt
number, patients/clients name, age, and sex, and date
of prescription. R.A. 6675 requires that the drugs be
written in their generic names.

IV Therapy and Legal Implications
Philippine Nursing Act of 1991 Section 28

- states that in the administration of intravenous injection,
special training shall be required according to protocol
established

Board of Nursing Resolution No. 8

- states that without such training and who administers
intravenous injections to patients shall be held liable either
criminally under Sec 30 Art. VII of said law or
administratively under sec 21 Art III or both (whether
causing or not an injury or death to the patient)

IV Therapy and Legal Implications
SCOPE OF DUTIES AND RESPONSIBLITIES IN IV THERAPY

1. Interpretation of the doctors orders for IV therapy.
2. Performance of venipuncture, insertion of needles, cannulas
except TPN and cutdown.
3. Preparation, administration, monitoring and termination of
intravenous solutions such as additives, intravenous medications,
and intravenous push.
4. Administration of blood/blood products as ordered by the
physicians.
5. Recognition of solutions and medicine incompatibilities.
6. Maintenance and replacement of sites, tubings, dressings, in
accordance with established procedures.
IV Therapy and Legal Implications
SCOPE OF DUTIES AND RESPONSIBLITIES IN IV THERAPY

7. Establishment of flow rates of solutions, medicines, blood and
blood components.
8. Utilization of thorough knowledge and proficient technical ability in
the use/care, maintenance, and evaluation of intravenous
equipment.
9. Nursing management of total parenteral nutrition, outpatient
intravenous care.
10. Maintenance of established infection control and aseptic nursing
interventions.
11. Maintenance of appropriate documentation, associated with the
preparation, administration and termination of all forms of
intravenous therapy.

Telephone Orders
Telephone Orders

Doctors should limit telephone orders to extreme emergency
where there is no alternative. The use of telephone in a non
emergency as a substitute for the physician himself can lead
to serious error and may border on malpractice.

Nurse should read back such order to the physician to make
certain the order has been correctly written.

Such order should be signed by the physician within 24
hours.

The nurse should sign the physicians name per her own and
note the time and order was received.

LEGAL
SAFEGUARDS
CHARTING
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS IN
CHARTING

PURPOSE OF THE PTS. CHART
Communication and continuity
Assurance of quality care
Research
Legal document
Statistics of the disease

*The chart is owned by the hospital


CHARTING
DOS & DONTS IN CHARTING
DOS
Full, factual and objectively accurate
Legible
Immediate
Personal

DONTS
Language or unacceptable words
Improper corrections
Spaces & skips
Abbreviation, not standard


CHARTING
DOS & DONTS IN CHARTING

Dont tamper the medical record by:
Adding
Rewriting
Destroying original record

Observe agencys standards on documentation
Complete & Concise
Specific & Standard abbreviations


CHARTING
Writing an Incident Report

A tool used as a means of identifying and
improving client care. They are usually made
immediately after its occurrence and validated
immediately by co-workers.

Purpose: to provide accurate documentation of
occurrences affecting the client as to have
basis for its intervention.



CHARTING
The following are common situations that require an
incident report:

MOST OF THEM ARE NEGLIGENT ACTS
Falls, burns & medication error
Break in the aseptic technique
Incorrect sponge count during surgery
Failure to report the clients condition

Rules in Incident Report
Dont use the word error or include lawful judgment or
inflammatory words



CONSENT

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
Consent is defined as a free and rational act that
presupposes knowledge of the thing to which
consent is being given by a person who is legally
capable to give consent.

Nature of consent - an authorization by the patient
or a person authorized by the law to give the
consent on the patients behalf.

Informed Consent - A written consent should be
signed to show that the procedure is the one
consented to and that the person understands the
nature of the procedure.

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
The nurses responsibility in witnessing the
giving of informed consent involves:

(1)witnessing the exchange b/w the client
and the physician
(2)witnessing the client affix his signature
(3) establishing that the client really
understood.

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF INFORMED CONSENT:

1. The diagnosis and explanation of the condition.

2. A fair explanation of the procedures to be done and
used and the consequences.

3. A description of alternative treatments or procedures.

4. A description of the benefits to be expected.

5. Material rights if any
+
6. The prognosis, the recommended care, procedure is
refused

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
WHO MUST CONSENT?

Patient must consent in his own behalf

If he is incompetent, or physically unable, and
is not in emergency case, consent must be
taken from another who is authorized to give
it in his own behalf.

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
CONSENT OF MINORS

Parents or someone standing in their behalf, gives the
consent to medical or surgical treatment of a minor.
Parental consent is not needed if the patient is married or
emancipated.

CONSENT OF MENTALY ILL

A mentally incompetent person cannot legally consent to
medical or surgical treatment. The consent must be taken
from parents or legal guardian.

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
MENTAL COMPETENCY
All patients are presumed to be competent unless
declared incompetent by a court of law. Supporting
documentation of the patients behaviors, speech,
decision making and physical and mental status are
very useful in establishing his/her mental competency.

EMERGENCY SITUATION
No consent is necessary because inaction at such time
may cause greater injury. If time is available and an
informed consent is possible, it is best that this be
taken to protect all the parties concerned.

CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
REFUSAL TO CONSENT

A patient who is mentally and legally competent
has the right to refuse the touching of his body
or to submit to a medical or surgical procedure
no matter how necessary, nor how imminent
the danger to his life or health if he fails to
submit to treatment.


CONSENT TO MEDICAL AND
SURGICAL PROCEDURE
MEDICAL RECORDS

Was created as a means of communication among health
care practitioners. Today medical records serve two important
functions: to provide legal documentation, and obtain third
party payments (e.g. Medicare) They are good evidence in
legal suits but are not admissible evidence against the
patient.

If information is not charted, it was not done or observed

LEGAL RISKS FOR SAFETY EQUIPMENT
The nurse should exercise reasonable care in selecting
equipment to be used in patients. Generally, a nurse is not liable
for a nonobservable and non-discoverable defect in the
equipment.

CONTRACT

CONTRACT
WHAT IS A CONTRACT?

o Is a meeting of minds between two persons
where they bind themselves to give
something or to render some services.
o Practically anything could be subjected to a
contract as long as these are not contrary to
law, morals, good customs, public order and
public policy.

CONTRACT
Kinds of Contracts

Formal Contracts - refers to an agreement b/w
parties and is required to be in writing. E.g.
marriage contracts

Informal Contracts - one in which concluded as the
result of a written document where the law does not
require the same to be in writing.

Express Contracts - The one in which the conditions
and terms of contract are given orally or in writing by the
parties concerned. E.g. PDN under the doctrine of facio
ut des means I do that you may give.

CONTRACT
Kinds of Contracts

Implied Contracts - one that is concluded as a result
of acts of conduct of the parties to which the law
ascribes an objective intentions to enter into a
contract.

Void contracts - one that is inexistent from the very
beginning and therefore may not be enforced.

Illegal contracts - one that is expressly prohibited by
law

CONTRACT
Illegal Contracts

Those that are made in protection of the law

Consent obtained by fraud

Those obtained under duress

Those obtained under undue influence

Those obtained through material
misrepresentation


NURSES AND
WILLS

NURSES AND WILLS
WILLS - legal declaration of a persons intentions upon death.
- Called a testamentary document because it takes
effect after the death of its maker
- An act whereby a person is permitted with the formalities
prescribed by law, to control a certain degree the
deposition of his estate, to take effect after death.

Decedent a person whose property is transmitted through
succession whether or not he left a will

Testator a person who left a will.

Testatrix a woman who is making a will

Heir a person called to succession either by the provision of a
will or by operation of law





NURSES AND WILLS
Testate a person who dies leaving a will
Intestate a person who died without leaving a will
Probate validation of a will in court
Administrator one who administers the provision
of the will
Estate the interest a person has in lands or in
any other subject to property
Attestation Clause- means the clause wherein the
witness certifies that the instrument has been executed
before them, and the manner of the same.





NURSES AND WILLS
TYPES OF WILLS

o Holographic will a will is written, dated and signed by the
testator
o Nuncupative will or Nuncupation- an oral will


WHO CAN MAKE A WILL?
Sound mind
Eighteen years old & above
Not prohibited by law





WHO CAN WITNESS?
Sound mind
Eighteen years old & above
Able to read and write
Not blind, deaf or dumb





NURSES AND WILLS
The Nurses obligation in the Execution of a Will
Note the soundness of the pts mind
Ensure there was freedom from fraud or under
influence
The pt should be above 18 years of age
Note the will was signed by the testator and that the
witnesses signed the will in the presence of the
testator
For protection, the nurse must make a notation on
the pts chart




NURSES AND WILLS
ADVANCE CARE DIRECTIVE
- a document written or completed by the client and
used by a facility or hospital to provide care at a time
when client cannot make his own decision

SUBJECTS:
1. Show risk for early dementia
2. Show risk for stroke
3. Activities- severe head injuries
4. Severe and recurring psychiatric illness
5. Terminally ill




NURSES AND WILLS
Characteristics of Advance Directives

a. Allows clients to participate in choosing
health care providers
b. Allows also in choosing the type of medical
treatment the client desires.
c. Allows clients to consent or refuse
treatments




NURSES AND WILLS
TYPES:

1. INSTRUCTIVE DIRECTIVE - specifies life-sustaining
treatment to be withheld or withdrawn.
LIVING WILL - legal document stating person does not wish
to have extraordinary life saving measures when not able to
make decisions about his own care.
-applicable for life saving treatment only.
Example: DNR

2. PROXY OR DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY
- legal document giving designated person authority to make
health care decisions on the clients behalf when the client is
unable to do so.





DNR
DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)

Factors in giving order of resuscitation:
1. Clients will and advance directives
2. Disease prognosis such as cancer or HIV
3. Clients ability to cope
4. Whether CPR will be given or not

Reasons for refusing to perform resuscitation
o Epidemic or widespread disease or debilitating condition & that
CPR is not beneficial
o CPR will aggravate or prolong the agony of the client against
cultural & religious suffering
o Advance directives & Will





ORGAN
DONATION

ORGAN DONATION
REQUIREMENTS:

Any person 18 years of age or older may become an organ
donor by written consent.

Informed choice to donate an organ can take place with the
use of a written document signed by the client prior to
death, a will, or a donor card or an advance directive.

In the absence of appropriate documentation, a family
member or legal guardian may authorize donation on the
descendants organs.

In case of newborns, they must be full term already (more
than 2000 grams)





ORGAN DONATION
TYPES:
1. Autotransplantation- donor and recipient are one and the
same
Ex: skin and bones

2. Heterologous- donor and recipient are two different
individuals.
a. animal to human c. cadaver donor
b. human to human d. living donor

Types of organs used :
1. Those that regenerate 2. Those that come in pair
- bone marrow, skin - kidneys, eyes






ORGAN DONATION
Religions that have different views regarding organ
donations

Russian Orthodox: permits all donations EXCEPT THE
HEART.

Jehovahs Witness: DOES NOT ALLOW organ donation
and all organ to be transplanted must be drained of blood
first.

Judaism: They permit organ donation as long as with
RABBINICAL CONSULTATION.
Islam: will NOT USE ORGAN STORED IN ORGAN
BANKS.







CODE OF
ETHICS

ICN Code of Ethics
An international code of ethics for
nurses was first adopted by the
International Council of Nurses
(ICN) in 1953. It has been revised
and reaffirmed at various times
since, most recently with this review
and revision completed in 2005.
PREAMBLE
Nurses have four fundamental
responsibilities: to promote health, to prevent
illness, to restore health and to alleviate suffering.
The need for nursing is universal.

Inherent in nursing is respect for human
rights, including cultural rights, the right to life and
choice, to dignity and to be treated with respect.
Nursing care is respectful of and unrestricted by
considerations of age, colour, creed, culture,
disability or illness, gender, sexual orientation,
nationality, politics, race or social status.
PREAMBLE

Nurses render health services to the
individual, the family and the
community and co-ordinate their
services with those of related groups.
ELEMENTS OF THE CODE
1. REGISTERED NURSES AND PEOPLE

Ethical Principles:

Values, customs and spiritual beliefs shall be respected
Individual freedom to make decisions
Personal information acquired must be held in confidence

GUIDELINES TO BE OBSERVED:

a. individuality and totality of patients
b. respect
c. uphold the rights of individuals
d. take into consideration culture and values
* in the event of conflict, welfare and safety take precedence








CODE OF ETHICS FOR RN
2. REGISTERED NURSES AND PRACTICE

Ethical Principles
a. Human life is inviolable
b. Quality and excellence in the care of patients
c. Accurate documentation- nursing accountability

GUIDELINES TO BE OBSERVED:
a. know the definition and scope of nursing practice
b. be aware of duties and responsibilities
c. acquire and develop competence in knowledge, skills and
attitude
d. optimum standard of safe nursing practice
e. be morally and legally responsible
f. patients records considered confidential






CODE OF ETHICS FOR RN
RNS are aware that their actions have professional, ethical,
moral and legal dimensions

GUIDELINES TO BE OBSERVED:
1. Duties in conformity with law

2. Not allow to be used in advertisements that demean image
of the profession

3. Decline any gift, favor or hospitality from patient

4. Not demand and receive any commission, fee for
recommendations made

5. Avoid any abuse of relationship







CODE OF ETHICS FOR RN
REGISTERED NURSES AND THE PROFESSION

Ethical Principles:
1. Maintain loyalty
2. Compliance with by laws of accredited professional organizations
3. Commitment to continual learning
4. Contribute to the improvement of the socio-economic conditions
and welfare of nurses

GUIDELINES TO BE OBSERVED:
a. Be a member of accredited prof organization (PNA)
b. Strictly adhere to nursing standards
c. Strive to secure equitable working conditions through appropriate
legislation and other means
d. Assert for the implementation of labor and work standards







CODE OF ETHICS FOR RN
REGISTERED NURSES AND CO-WORKERS

The nurse sustains a co-operative
relationship with co-workers in nursing and other
fields.

The nurse takes appropriate action to safeguard
individuals, families and communities when their
health is endangered by a coworker or any other
person.