A nurse forgets to raise the side railing and so the patient falls off the bed. The action is?

Appeared in: IGIMS Staff Nurse - 2018

Explanation

The nurse's failure to raise the side rail is an act of omission that falls below the established standard of care for patient safety.
This act was unintentional, which is the key characteristic of negligence, as opposed to intentional torts like assault or battery.
The omission directly led to patient harm (the fall), fulfilling the core elements of negligence: duty, breach, causation, and harm.
In nursing, forgetting a crucial safety measure like side rails is a classic example of professional negligence.

Option B: Assault is an intentional tort that involves creating a fear of harmful contact. The nurse's action was an unintentional oversight, not a deliberate threat.
Option C: Fraud is an intentional act of deception for personal gain. The nurse did not forget the side rail with the intent to deceive or gain from it.
Option D: Battery is an intentional tort involving unauthorized physical contact. The patient's fall was the result of an omission (not raising the rail), not an intentional act of touching by the nurse.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Use the key finding related to Legal Torts in Nursing Practice to guide bedside assessment, documentation, and the next nursing action.
Adherence to basic safety protocols, such as using side rails, is a fundamental nursing responsibility to prevent patient harm and avoid legal liability.
A single act of negligence can lead to serious patient injury, loss of trust, and significant legal and professional consequences for the nurse and the healthcare facility.
What if the patient was cognitively intact and refused to have the side rails up? The nurse's primary responsibility would be to educate the patient on the risks, document the refusal and the education provided, and implement alternative fall prevention strategies. While this documentation is crucial, it may not completely absolve the nurse of liability if a fall occurs, especially if the patient was assessed as a high fall risk.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the core action in the scenario: a nurse forgot to perform a safety measure.
Recognize that 'forgetting' implies the act was unintentional, not deliberate.
Next, analyze the outcome of this omission: the patient was harmed (fell).
Review the legal terms in the options and recall their definitions, paying close attention to the element of 'intent'.
Assault, Fraud, and Battery are all intentional torts, meaning they are done on purpose.
Negligence is an unintentional tort, resulting from a failure to act with appropriate care.

Concept Tested & Keywords

QcewSlbE2WnM5hkzY6M8cC

E6 Nursing_Management_and_leadership_Johny_Kutty_JosephCbs_Publishers (pp 16-364 of 374) p. 334-336

E6 Nursing Fundamentals Potter Perry 12e Part 2 p. 101-103

Practise the full IGIMS Staff Nurse - 2018

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.