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Blesi8e Ch03 Terms
[MO1] Legal Issues [Tier 01]
Term | Definition |
---|---|
abuse (elder) | any abuse and neglect of persons age 60 and older by a caregiver or another person in a relationship involving an expectation of trust. |
acceptance | agreeing verbally or in writing to the terms of a contract. |
advance directives | a living will; a document, written in advance, that states that patient's wishes regarding end-of-life care. |
Affordable Care Act (ACA) agent | passed by Congress in 2010. commonly known as Obamacare |
agent | one that acts or has the power or authority to act for another. |
Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) | The ADAAA emphasizes that the definition of disability should be construed in favor of broad coverage of individuals to the maximum extent permitted by the terms of the ADA and generally not require extensive analysis. |
arbitration | a private, judicial determination of a dispute and an alternative to court action (litigation) and generally just as final and binding. |
beyond a reasonable doubt | being sure of a criminal defendant's guilt to a moral certainty. |
capacity | having the mental competency to make health care decisions, or execute a will at the time the will was signed and witnessed. The |
common law | the traditional unwritten law of England, based on custom and usage. |
compensatory damages | damages recovered in payment for actual injury or economic loss, which does not include punitive damages. |
conflict of interest | physician self-referral |
consent | permission given for something |
consideration | a vital element in the law of contracts. |
defendant | the party sued in a civil lawsuit or the party charged with a crime in a criminal prosecution. |
deposition | involves a live person being questioned under oath by an attorney who is party to the proceeding and takes place prior to the case going before the judge (and jury). |
durable power of attorney | an instruction from the patient to all who might need to know that the patient has empowered a representative to make health care decisions and the discontinuation of life support. |
electronic medical records (EMR) | patient records in a digital format |
electronic health records (EHR) | the interoperability of electronic medical records, or the ability to share medical records with other health care facilities. |
emancipated minor | a person who is not legally an adult and may not require parental permission for medical or surgical care. |
exploitation | the unauthorized or improper use of the resources of a patient profit or gain such as: forgery, misuse/theft of possessions, coercion or deception or improper use of guardianship or power of attorney. |
express consent | when the patient directly communicates his or her consent to the physician, ideally in writing. |
federal law | legislation enacted by Congress and signed by the president. |
felony | crime sufficiently serious to be punishable by death or a term in state or federal prison. |
Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) | act that prohibits discrimination in group health plan coverage based on genetic information |
Good Samaritan Act | protects individuals who decide to provide help and serve those who are injured. |
guardian | a person who has been appointed by a judge to take care of a minor child or incompetent adult personally and/or to manage that person's affairs. |
gross negligence | carelessness to the point of reckless disregard for the safety or lives of others, and so great it appears to be a conscious violation of other people's right to safety. |
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) | an act of Congress passed in 1996 that affords certain protections to persons covered by health care plans |
HIPAA Privacy Rule | provides federal protection for personal health information held by covered entities and gives patients an array of rights with respect to that information. |
HIPAA Security Rule | establishes national standards to protect individuals' electronic personal health information |
implied consent | This law assumes that an unconscious patient would consent to emergency care if her or she were conscious and able to consent. |
incompetence | not capable; not legally qualified; deficient |
informed consent | agreement to do something or to allow something to happen only after all the relevant facts are known. |
jurisdiction | the authority given by law to a court to try cases and rule on legal matters within a particular geographic area and/or over certain types of legal cases. |
legislating | the act of exercising the power and function of making laws that have the force of authority by virtue of their origin by a state legislature or U.S. Congress. |
libel | a written form of defamation |
living will | advance directive; a document, written in advance, that states the patient's wishes regarding end-of-life care. |
locum tenens | In the health care context, a physician who substitutes temporarily for another. |
mature minor | The Mature Minor Rule enables the provider to ask questions of the young person in order to determine whether or not the minor has the maturity to provide his or her own consent for treatment. |
mediation | a type of dispute resolution where the parties to a lawsuit meet with a neutral third party (the mediator) in an effort to settle a case. |
medical malpractice | an act or continuing conduct of a physician or hospital that does not meet the standard of professional competence and results in provable damages to the patient. |
misdemeanor | a lesser crime than a felony, punishable by a fine and/or county jail time for up to one year. |
neglect | the failure or refusal of a caregiver or other responsible person to provide for an elder's basic physical, emotional or social needs or failure to protect the elder from harm. |
negligence | guilty of neglect; lacking in due care or concern; act of carelessness |
offer | a specific proposal to enter into an agreement with another; an offer is an essential component of an enforceable contract. |
Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA) | requires a provider accepting Medicare or Medicaid to inform the patient of their right to accept/refuse treatment, their advance directive under state law and of any local policies regarding withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining equipment |
plaintiff | the party that initiates a lawsuit by filing a complaint with the clerk of the court against the defendant(s) |
power of attorney | a legal document authorizing a person to act as another's attorney, legal representative or agent. |
preponderance of the evidence | the greater weight of the evidence required in a civil lawsuit for the trier of fact to decide in favor of one side or the other. |
privileged communication | communication between parties to a confidential relation (as between provider and patient) such that the recipient cannot be legally compelled to disclose it as a witness |
property right | the entitlement to anything that is owned by a person or entity. Property is divided into two types: real property, which is any interest in land, real estate, growing plants or the improvements on it; and personal property, which is everything else. |
prosecution | in criminal law, the government attorney charging and trying the case against a person accused of a crime, or a common term for the government's side in a criminal case. |
punitive damages | damages awarded in a lawsuit as a punishment and example to others for malicious, evil or fraudulent acts. |
res ipsa loquitur | a rule of evidence important in many malpractice suits, not a rule of substantive law. |
risk management | clinical and administrative activities undertaken to identify, evaluate and reduce the risk of injury to patients, staff and visitors and the risk of loss to the organization itself |
respondeat superior | A legal doctrine, most commonly used in tort, that holds an employer or principal legally responsible for the wrongful acts of an employee or agent, if such acts occur within the scope of the employment or agency. |
slander | spoken defamation |
standard of care | the watchfulness, attention, caution and prudence that a reasonable person in the circumstances would exercise. |
standard of proof | the burden that the plaintiff or prosecution must meet in presenting their case; the measure by which evidence is judged to show a "preponderance of evidence" in a civil action and "beyond a reasonable doubt" in a criminal case |
state law | legislation enacted by the state legislature and signed by the governor. |
statute | a federal or state written law enacted by the Congress or state legislature respectively |
statute of limitations | a statute prescribing a period of limitations for bringing. |
statutory law | legally enacted; deriving authority from law |
subpoena duces tecum | court process initiated by a party in litigation, compelling production of specific documents and other items, a material in relevance to facts at issue in pending judicial proceedings |
supremacy clause | allows a Supreme Court ruling to be binding on state courts if involving a constitutional issue, |
Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (UAGA) | a template for public policy developed to ensure that versions of legislation governing organ donations are substantially the same from state to state |
vicariously liable | attachment of responsibility to a person for harm or damages caused by another person in either a negligence lawsuit or criminal prosecution. |
wounds of violence | physical injury due to a firearm |
wrongful death | the death of a human being as a result of wrongful act of another person |