Legal and Professional Issues in Nursing - myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about theLegal and Professional Issues in Nursing forChild Abuse. Answer: Introduction It is our responsibility as healthcare professionals to protect our patients from dangers that they could be facing from other people within the community. Very many individuals from children to the elderly experience harmful situations in the society and the healthcare professionals are tasked with the duty of addressing such abuses. There are several legal and professional issues that are addressed when these cases of abuse are brought to the table of healthcare professionals. Accountability has become more important in nursing than ever before for the sake of the public, their employers, the patients, and their profession. It is therefore crucial that the healthcare practitioners develop a more insightful understanding of the legal and professional dilemmas that they may come across in their course of work (Schmeidel et al. 2012, p. 33). In this essay, we will talk about child abuse, domestic violence, and abuse of the elderly. Additionally, we will discuss the professional and legal issues that are addressed by the healthcare practitioners when people report to them that they have been harmed. Furthermore, we will address the relevant documentation, codes, and legislation that govern the procedures of reporting these cases of mistreatment. Finally, the essay talks about the implications for the nurses and the delivery of care for the patient. Child Abuse Child abuse can be defined as actions and behaviors by an adult towards a child that are aimed at endangering or harming the child. Legally, a child is anyone below 18 years of age. Child abuse affects children from all walks of life irrespective of race, social class, or economic background (Cross et al. 2012, p. 211). How one responds to cases of child abuse affects the overall experience of the child and their eventual healing. Everyone in the society has the responsibility of reporting cases of child abuse in the first instance when they notice anything of the sought. As a healthcare professional, it is important to respect the privacy of an abused child if such a case is brought to your attention. Respecting the privacy of an abused child means that you will have to ask for their permission before attempting to look at any bruises particularly if the child in question is attempting to hide the bruises (Finkelhor 2010, p. 101). Additionally, it is the presence of another responsible adult is important when you are trying to look at the injuries. Professionally, it is essential that one reserves their comments after assessing the bruises because it could be possible that the childs body bears some marks that might not have resulted from the abuse (Miller-Perrin and Perrin 2012, p. 214). Any reasonable suspicion must be forwarded to the appropriate authorities for further investigations. Healthcare professionals are also required to ask the child questions with the aim of getting simple explanations regarding any marks that may seem suspicious. The role should not be investigating the child; instead, the healthcare practitioner should be aiming at getting the necessary information and report your findings to the necessary authorities (Furniss 2013, p.172). Practice professionalism as much as possible by avoiding leading questions and instead, asking open-minded questions. It is inappropriate to pressure the child by prompting for answers, instead let the child answer the questions on their own convolution. After finding all the relevant information regarding the abuse, it is important to document your observations concerning the abuse and neglect. Note down the conversation you had with the child in your own words (Lazenbatt, 2010). Additionally, document any information that the child or a member of their family said to you. It is important to note that anything you note down as having been said by the child is admissible as a piece of evidence in investigations regarding the abuse. It is then legally advisable to report the case of abuse to the relevant law enforcement agency. Chapter 261 of the Texas family code demands that anyone who believes beyond any doubt that a child has been mentally or physically has to report the matter to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services. In fact, failing to report an abuse is classified as class B misdemeanor that can be given a sentence of around 180 days behind bars and/or a fine in the region of $2000. The law requires that professionals such as health practitioners who handle cases of child abuse must report abuse within 48 hours. It is essential to provide the name of the child and their address if possible when making a report (Cross et al. 2012, p. 213). Your identity is protected if you report any case regarding child abuse and may only be revealed by a court order. As highlighted in chapter 261 of the Texas Family Code, the Child Protective Service carries out the civil investigation to determine whether the child has been truly abused. The major implication of this study is that the healthcare worker should be educated to have a better understanding of how to handle victims of child abuse. The curriculum of nursing should be modified to incorporate communication and policy skills. This will effectively improve the delivery of patient care to all affected persons. Domestic Violence This is an act of a threatening behavior or abuse that occurs between adults who are family members or intimate partners irrespective of sexuality or gender. It includes sexual, physical, psychological, financial, and emotional abuse among others (Goodman and Smyth 2011, p.79). Reports suggest that domestic violence is the largest contributor of injuries to women in the United States of America (Garca-Moreno et al. 2015, p. 1570). It is, however, worth noting that domestic violence is not only limited to women; men equally experience domestic violence in addition to any other family member. The healthcare practitioners have an ideal opportunity to address this menace of domestic violence that has become prevalent in recent years. The healthcare worker needs to address this issue of domestic violence with care to ensure that the victim is comfortable to disclose what they have gone through. The primary role of the practitioner when they come into contact with a victim of domestic violence is to identify the presence of the abuse and manage patient care effectively (Husso et al. 2012, p. 349). The first thing that a healthcare worker must do is to screen the patient for abuse. Nurses and doctors are encouraged to perform routine screening on patients to determine the presence of domestic violence. It is also important to evaluate the medical context of the abuse. This evaluation includes assessing the frequency and severity of the abuse and whether the medication is being withheld from the patient among other assessments. After these evaluations, the practitioner is required to provide the victim with medical care regarding the presented injuries (Husso et al. 2012, p. 350). Additionally, it is essential to evaluate the victims safety by asking them open-minded questions rather than leading questions. The victim must never be coerced into answering questions that they do not feel comfortable asking. This is to ensure comfort and trust between the patient and the healthcare worker. The next step is to provide a counseling session to the victim concerning any available management options and resources. The victim is advised on how he/she can handle future abuse and any resources that can be used to manage domestic violence. Additionally, it is important to document all the findings from your conversation and assessment of the victim (Roberson and Wallace 2016, p. 105). As a healthcare professional, it is advisable that you refer the victim to the most appropriate legal agency that will help the victim. It is important to exercise privacy during the screening process. It may even be necessary to exclude all friends and members of the family from the screening process as they may bias the response of the victim. Additionally, it is essential for the healthcare professional to make the most appropriate referrals regarding the needs of the victim (Roberson and Wallace 2016, p. 110). The victims needs may include legal services, advocacy services, and medical services among others. Healthcare practitioners required by law to report cases of domestic violence to the appropriate law enforcement agencies. This law helps to improve the data collection on abuse related to domestic violence and thus enhance patient care (Modi, Palmer and Armstrong 2014, p. 254). As a result, the perpetrators of domestic violence can be held to account due to their actions. The implication of this research, however, is that the healthcare workers need to be trained adequately to give them the necessary skills required to help the patients with the support needed to manage domestic violence. There is also an argument that the mandatory reporting law violates the patients right to privacy. Other doctors have even argued that the healthcare practitioner has no right to proceed with an investigation in situations where the patient conceals details of domestic violence. Abuse of the Elderly Abuse of the elderly is mostly defined as an act of omission or commission (Imbody, B. and Vandsburger 2011, p. 636). The abuse may be physical, emotional, psychological and financial among others. It is important for the healthcare professional to focus on individuals who are at a greater risk of experiencing abuse (Donovan, K. and Regehr 2010, p. 177). Some of the groups of elders who are at greater risks of abuse include the most dependent elders, those who are mentally incompetent, elders whose family members engage in substance abuse and elders who have mentally ill family members among others. Healthcare workers can make use of screening tools, for example, the Elder Adult Screening Test. The tool is made up of short questions that are designed to be used for the use of mentally competent elders. These questions help to assess if the said individual could be experiencing abuse of any kind. The design of this tool however only makes it effective in addressing cases of abuse among the mentally competent elders and they do not guarantee effectiveness if the elder in question is mentally challenged (Schmeidel et al. 2012, p. 27). It is, however, important to note that even the mentally incompetent individuals possess some degree of competency in observing and reporting what they experience. As a result, it is necessary to treat any report they may make about abuse with the seriousness it deserves. Another thing that healthcare professionals can do to address issues of elder abuse is by observing and substantiating the symptoms of abuse among elders that are suspected to be experiencing elder abuse. Observation of the physical characteristics of the victim in question can help to assess physical abuse (Anetzberger 2012, p. 109). Additionally, evaluating the financial situation of the patient can help to assess the possibility of financial abuse. After the above assessments, the healthcare practitioner can help the victim to access the necessary legal interventions. There are not many specific laws against adult abuse but the present civil and criminal legislation can be used to address this issue (Bennett and Kingston 2013, p. 111). The healthcare professional should be able to offer the victim legal options that have referrals to appropriate legal services. The two types of legal interventions include civil and criminal interventions. In most cases, the civil intervention can lead to criminal intervention as is the situation with protection orders. The protection order gives the victim a civil court order that is intended to set conditions around the accused. In any case, the abuser breaches this order; it becomes a criminal issue that is then addressed using a criminal court order (Schneider et al. 2010, p. 260). The victim can either apply for the related abuser or unrelated abuser which are the two types of protection orders. These two orders fall under the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act of 1989. Conclusion It is the duty of the healthcare professional to protect the patients from risks of harmful behavior from others and the community. There are different groups of individuals in the community who experience different forms of abuse that range from child abuse, domestic violence, and elder abuse. There are several procedures that the healthcare workers follow when addressing these issues of abuse. These procedures are aimed at providing quality care to the patients and ensuring patient safety from the abusers. Additionally, several legislations are in place to help the victims of abuse. Several codes and documentations protect the victims and the witnesses who choose to report cases of abuse to the relevant authorities on behalf of the abused. 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