Law - -the sum total of human made rules designed to help people maintain order in
their society and settle their problems in a nondestructive manner.
Statutory Law - -established through the legislative process and expands each time
Congress or state legislatures pass new legislation.
Common Law - -established by previous court decisions and expands each time a judge
makes a legal ruling in a case.
Public Law - -defines and interprets relationships between individuals and the
government. the major categories of public law include: constitutional, administrative, and
criminal law.
Private Law - -defines and interprets the relationship between individuals. the categories
include: contract and tort law.
Constitutional law in nursing - -defines the client's and nurses' constitutional rights and
remedies.
Administrative law in nursing - -includes the licensing and regulation of nursing practice
as well as areas such as collective bargaining
Criminal law in nursing - -usually involves the nurse as a witness, however, it can also
involve the nurse as a defendant who is accused of a criminal offense
, Contract law in nursing - -identifies the common types of employer-employee
relationships and determines the risks and protections inherent in each type of relationship.
Tort law in nursing - -is concerned with the reparation of wrongs or injuries inflicted by
one person on another. private or civil wrongs.
the power of the state to license nurses and other health care professionals originates in the
U.S. constitution. Which amendment? - -10th amendment in the case of Dent. v. West
Virginia, 1889
State Nursing Practice Acts (NPAs) - -nurses are licensed under them. The NPAs establish
entry requirements into the profession, set definitions of nursing practice, and establish
guidelines for professional discipline when a nurse fails to obey state laws or becomes
incompetent.
Licensure - -it is an exercise of the state's police power that the state legislature uses to
protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens. through state licensure statutes, the state
controls entry into the profession, the discipline of licensees who fail to comply with minimal
standards, and the nursing activities of unlicensed practitioners (nurse imposers).
What is the most visible function of the NPAs? - -the control over entry of new members
into the nursing profession.
The Compact - -to participate in the Compact, each state legislature must enact the
model Compact. It allows a nurse who holds a license in the state of legal residency to practice
in other states that have enacted the Compact. the Compact is the results of technological
advances, including the Internet and the ease of transportation and communication in health
care. the goal of the Compact is to ensure public protection and enhance access to safe and
competent nursing care for patients who are across state lines from their nurse.
True or False?