MALPRACTICE APOLOGY ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY IN NURSING
Christie Lynne Boschee
L34152617
Liberty University
BUSI 302
Professor Lauren Elder
June 17, 2024
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Malpractice Apology Annotated Bibliography in Nursing
Introduction:
Malpractice in the medical world is a large and major issue. Now with the medical
field being so large we need to make the subject smaller and my topic will be about malpractice
in the nursing world. This is beginning to become and be a larger problem than we have heard in
years previous as there is more pressure, patients, responsibilities, and overall care for the
patients by one nurse per shift. Even the Doctors tend to give the orders to the nurses and expect
them to conduct the tasks at hand this then turns any issues that could arise onto the nurses. This
is where malpractice comes into play, and it can go against the nursing staff. This is just one
instance that malpractice can come into play in healthcare and with the nursing staff.
There are many other types of malpractice that will be covered just as when a nurse
makes a mistake as one did in 2022. The nurse “RaDonda Vaught was sentenced to 3 years of
probation for making a lethal medical error” (Landman, 2022, P.1). She had by mistake given the
wrong medication to a patient which caused the death of the said patient. This all came down to
the fact that there is an extreme shortage in the nursing field and nurses have a ton of
responsibility and many patients to take care of. Mistakes happen and it is not that nurses or
medical professionals do not feel apologetic for the mistake that are made they most definitely
do but with the shortages in the medical world from before Covid-19 and now even worse after
the fact these mistakes are bound to happen. The only way to combat this type of issue is to
provide more literature, training, and more staff to combat such issues.
In my many years of life on this earth I have pondered and chosen many different
professions, but it was not until I started my journey with foster care, deaths in my family, sick
children that need my care 24/7, and the learning of the diseases that my little have because of
their traumatic growth in the womb and all that has been part of their life since conception has
made me realize that becoming a Registered Nurse and possibly even more in the nursing field of
healthcare is where I am and will be at some point in this adventure of life. With that said I feel
that I have researched according to my new found field of study and what it will entail and bring
to the table for myself and my beautiful family however long they are to be with us in our home
or on this beautiful earth that God has so graciously presented to each of us.
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Sources:
Ackerman, B. G. (2018). You Had Me at “I’m Sorry”: The impact of Physicians’ Apologies on
Medical Malpractice Litigation. . National Law Forum https://www.natlawreview.com/article/
In issue number 174 Volume xiv of the National Law Review we are taken on a journey of
what the impact is when a physician apologizes during a medical malpractice litigation. This
article walks us through the feeling that a physician has when a procedure or treatment happens
to go wrong. This includes the need and feeling the urge to apologize and to continue. We also
see and it is discussed that the reason that most patients make the decision to persevere with a
lawsuit is due to the way that they feel they have been treated by the physician or how the family
feels they have been treated.
Bender, F.F. (2007). “I’m Sorry” Laws and Medical Liability. . AMA Journal of Ethics
https://www.journalofethics.ama-assn.org
In the AMA Journal of Ethics, we are taken on a trip of a patient that came into the hospital
in active labor at her 38th week of pregnancy. She had previously had the diagnosis of
gestational diabetes and she was fully dilated. The physician on duty did request her chart that he
never received and even though he had not received the chart he had the woman push for the
next few hours. There was an issue though with the delivery and it was a complicated delivery
due to the babies’ shoulders being stuck. Because of this issue once the baby was born it was
found out to have damage to its right arm that causes paralysis. The physician blamed this all on
the patient and in turn stated that her diabetes was not under control and if he would have known
about the diabetes, he would have done an ultrasound before delivery, which in turn would have
resulted in a c-section because of the size of the baby. This all brought on the fact that the
physician felt sorry for what had happened and what had not happened and was in limbo as to
tell the patient what could have been different if he knew the situation before delivery. The
physician knew that with the risk of a malpractice lawsuit he kept his silence. This did not help
the issue as the mother was not given any answers to why this had happened to her baby, which
left her no choice but to file a lawsuit.
Cahill, M. (2021). Evidence That Nurses Need to Participate in Diagnosis: Lessons from
Malpractice Claims. . National Institute of Health https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
In Evidence that Nurses Need to Participate in Diagnosis we see that the need for nurses to
participate in all care along with the physicians is an important aspect in healthcare. It goes into
the factors that nurses are those that are named the primary caregiver to the patients are most
always a part of the malpractice lawsuit. It also shows us that having the nursing staff contribute
to the diagnosis in patients can be a benefit as it leads to more nurses taking a leading role in
healthcare. Not only are the physicians held accountable for the actions of a patient, but the
nurses also themselves are held accountable for their participation. So, why not have them take
on a larger role which in turn will allow for more knowledgeable and skillful healthcare
professionals.
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Hoffman, J. (2019). Taking a Second Look at Nursing Malpractice Cases. , Crico
https://www.rmf.harvard.edu
In this publication we see that yes most definitely nurses are most often a part off all
healthcare duties, but to what degree is their involvement when it comes to accidents or alleged
accidents that proceed into a malpractice lawsuit. There were cases that were evaluated from
“2007-2016” that showed that nurses were in fact not normally part of the malpractice lawsuits
that were brought forth in the liability portion of the suit. Now when it came to malpractice
lawsuits in a clinical setting the nurses were often the responsible party and were the defendants
in the lawsuits. So, in all reality even though there are certain aspects of the healthcare world
that the nurses are not the responsibility party of they are in fact often the one that is what is the
party that had the responsibility in the cases of malpractice.
Judson, K., Harrison, C., Albright, T. (2021). Law and Ethics for Health Professions.
Our textbook as we have seen to this point goes into every aspect of ethical practices within
the health care profession. This goes into the definitions, legalities, malpractice, and ethical
behaviors within the world of healthcare. Not only has this been a learning tool for the coverage
that we have investigated, but this will be a great reference to those of us who are moving on into
the world of healthcare as we know it with a biblical sense being presented and in our back
pocket.
Landman, K. (2022). A nurse was just sentenced to 3 years of probation for a lethal medical
error. , Vox Science https://www.vox.com
We see in the article in Vox Science that a nurse made a fatal medical error and was
prosecuted for this extreme error. She was sentenced to three years of probation for “criminally
negligent homicide” as well as the neglect of an adult who had impairments. She the defendant
could have gotten up to eight years in prison but instead received a sentence of probation which
could allow her to have the conviction dismissed after she completes the probation. This was a
case became a big deal in the nursing world as it was prosecuted in a criminal court which is
unusual since most cases go through the state nursing boards for disciplinary action, or the case
may even be taken into a civil court where a family may be able to receive some type of
compensation. This was not the case as the errors were too serious to overlook, not taking the
case into a criminal court setting.
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Malafy, H.K. (2022) Integrating a Biblical Worldview in Nursing Practice. Digital Commons
Centennial Library, https://www.digitalcommons.cedarville.edu
To bring our worldview into the practice of nursing we first need to know what worldview is
by definition and what it means to our inner being and who exactly and what exactly is our
worldview. This is all explained in the publishment that Hannah Malafy wrote as her honor’s
senior thesis. Not only does it expand on worldview in its entirety, but it expands on the
profession of nursing and how to incorporate the two into the healthcare practices of a nurse.
This then allows for the expansion into ethical practices and how and where they should be
presented and used. When nurses use their worldview in their practice their ability to heal
changes and in turn influences the outcome of the patient’s health. Having and knowing one’s
worldview also plays a part in what they feel when they make a mistake and how they manage
the said mistake. This then leads us to a more biblical side and take on how we practice medicine
and treat our patients from conception to death.
Morris G. (2023). Can a Nurse Be Sued for Malpractice? , Nurse Journal
https://www.nursejournal.org/articles
Gayle Morris discussed whether a nurse can be sued for malpractice in the Nurses Journal in
March of 2023. As she states it is all dependent of what the circumstances are whether this is
permittable. It is not necessarily a customary practice that a nurse will be or can be sued for
malpractice. We all know that in the world of healthcare we often are being cared for by a nurse,
nursing student, or an assistant to a nurse. Now if there is a mistake made, mistreatment, or not
providing adequate care then yes, it is a possibility. Most states have their own rules and
regulations that govern malpractice in the medical world. This is how each state comes to the
realization of whether a nurse is negligent and should be part if not all a malpractice suit.
Reig, L.S., Newbanks, R.R., Sprunger, R. (2017) Exploring Nurses’ Source of Caring, Faith
Practices, and View of Nursing. . Journal of Christian Nursing
https://www.journalslww.com/journalofchristiannursing
The article in the Journal of Christian Nursing explores the faith that is presented by the
nursing staff and how it effects their work. Those that were willing to come forward and profess
their feelings of faith showed that their feelings toward their occupation were more of a calling
than of a job. With in this feeling, they professed that they were more opted to volunteer their
time and donate their “pay from their job” to the need of the church. They felt that the nursing
profession was a way to give back to those who had given before us. This was all a part of their
Christian Worldview.
Ross, N.E., Newman, W. J. (2021). The Role of Apology Laws in Medical Malpractice. The
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Apologies
Apologies are just that they are apologies, and they are part of our communications as humans
which can either damage a relationship or strengthen a relationship. When there is the healthcare
system involved apologizing is still something that is debatable. There are those physicians,
nurses, hospital staff, assistants and surgeons that they have made a mistake in the treatment or
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care of that said patient and they wish to apologize to the patient or the family in which they
caused harm to, but in all reality they probably will do no such thing as if they did they would
have to make a full disclosure of their mistake and the errors that came about. The reason that
the full disclosure does not come into play is the fear of the repercussions of a malpractice suit
that could and would come to play. Then there are those physicians that do come about with full
disclosure and in turn this changes the decision of the family or patient to the side of not pressing
a lawsuit. Due to these types of situations, there are many states to pass what is know as apology
laws which in hopes will reduce the rate of malpractice cases coming forth and it allows a
physician, healthcare worker, nurse to apologize and get the mistake off their conscience. Even
though this is a hope at this point the laws have not had such an effect yet when it comes to
malpractice suits. Even though these laws are there to protect we are still seeing those medical
providers that are not being forthcoming and truthful which is causing the malpractice suits to
still be prevalent.
Nelson, T. (2024). Holy Bible (New King James Version (NKJV). Harper Collins Christian
Publishing, Inc.
Matthew 4:23-24: “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and
proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the
people. So, his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those
afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, those having seizures, and
paralytics, and he healed them.”
Westrick, S.J., Nyshi, J. (2016). Disclosure of Errors and Apology: Law and Ethics. The Journal
for Nurse Practitioners. www.npjournal.org
The concerns in today’s world of healthcare are whether to disclose errors and whether to
apologize for those errors. This is especially the case for nurses who have an extreme
responsibility to their patients which in turn brings them into the piece of liability that all dislike.
Nurses are required by agencies that regulate disclosures and the code of ethics that is brought
forth by the Nursing Association. Even though there is resistance to disclose information there
are those nurses and practitioners that are not aware the apology laws that are governed by the
states which can protect some of what a nurse says to a patient and or their family which some of
these laws will give them protection from it being used in a case against them. The laws that are
of protection are starting to be involved in the education portion and the safety portion of
training.
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Analysis:
I have come to see that there is an extreme issue when it comes to malpractice in the nursing
community du to the shortage in healthcare workers, training, literature, and support, as well as
support staff. I know that as I continue on with the research I am going to find and understand
more issues and may feel that there are some things that can be controlled and others that may
not be controlled but one thing I do know is that we need to follow our christian way of thinking
and our worlview in our medical profession as this is how the Lord is showing each of us to
follow the right path.
As the Bible state in Proverbs: 1722:”A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken
spirit dries the bones” (New King James Version (NKJV)).
