Deck 4: Principles of Liability

Question 1

Federal legislation that specifically addresses the release of protected health information is called _____.

A) COBRA
B) EMTALA
C) HIPAA
D) HITECH

Answer 1

HIPAA

Question 2

An intentional tort may include a(n)_____.

A) assault
B) failure to warn
C) negligence
D) vicarious liability

Answer 2

assault

Question 3

The unauthorized acquisition,access,use or disclosure of protected health information,which compromises the privacy or security of such information is called _____.

A) breach of confidentiality
B) corporate negligence
C) failure to warn
D) intentional tort

Answer 3

breach of confidentiality

Question 4

A breach of duty owed directly to a patient by a hospital is best described as _____ negligence.

A) charitable
B) corporate
C) professional
D) vicarious

Question 5

Nominal damages are awarded to _____.

A) justify bringing a lawsuit
B) make the plaintiff whole
C) punish the defendant
D) vindicate the injured party

Question 6

Under res ipsa loquitur the _____.

A) condition or injury was not the result of negligence and cannot result in a lawsuit
B) injury could have also occurred without the health care provider's involvement
C) patient could have contributed to his own injury,and a lawsuit is optional
D) provider had exclusive control over the instrument involved in the injury

Question 7

Malpractice refers to _____.

A) assault and battery
B) breach of duty
C) negligence
D) professional misconduct

Question 8

Damages awarded to make the plaintiff whole are referred to as _____.

A) actual
B) exemplary
C) nominal
D) punitive

Question 9

The first step to establishing liability is that _____.

A) A relationship must be established between a healthcare provider and a patient
B) An error in the delivery of healthcare must be identified by the risk manager
C) The healthcare provider must be licensed by the state in which the injury occurs
D) The patient must have sustained an injury and received negligent care for it

Question 10

Res ipsa loquitur is translated as _____.

A) let the patient beware
B) let the physician decide
C) the patient is always right
D) the thing speaks for itself

Question 11

Expert testimony is used in a malpractice case to _____.

A) defend the provider of health care
B) determine if a claim should be filed
C) establish a breach in the standard of care
D) estimate the damages due the plaintiff

Question 12

COBRA is the abbreviation for _____.

A) Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act
B) Consolidated Omnibus Burditt Reconciliation Act
C) Congressional Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act
D) Congressional Operating Budget Reconciliation Act

Question 13

Vicarious liability applies when the _____.

A) health care facility becomes responsible for a nurse's negligent actions
B) patient suffers an injury for failing to keep surgical follow-up appointments
C) physician with privileges at a facility is named in a malpractice claim
D) vendor provides a defective implantable device that was used for surgery

Question 14

The anti-dumping law is abbreviated as _____.

A) COBRA
B) EMTALA
C) HIPAA
D) TEFRA

Question 15

Res ipsa loquitur is a type of _____ tort.

A) contractual
B) intentional
C) nonintentional
D) professional

Question 16

The physician-patient relationship is established when the patient _____.

A) is assigned a primary care physician by the third-party payer
B) negotiates the cost of health care services with a physician
C) presents to the physician for the purpose of receiving health care
D) requests health care and the physician agrees to render health care

Question 17

A hospital-patient relationship is established when a patient _____.

A) asks a physician to initiate a referral for elective surgery
B) calls for information regarding available healthcare services
C) presents either voluntarily for care or in an emergency situation
D) receives and processes the hospital's bill for services provided

Question 18

Under the theory of failure to warn,the psychotherapist _____.

A) can warn an intended victim if the patient expresses the intent to do harm
B) has an ethical obligation only,not a legal one,which means a warning is optional
C) may not reveal a patient's intentions to harm a third party due to confidentiality issues
D) should alert the authorities only to the possibility that the patient may harm another

Question 19

Punitive damages may be awarded _____.

A) Above and beyond actual damages
B) In lieu of nominal damages
C) To make the plaintiff whole
D) Without proof of outrageous behavior

Question 20

Respondeat superior is associated with _____.

A) comparative negligence
B) corporate liability
C) professional negligence
D) vicarious liability

Question 21

Which is an obligation to behave in a certain way,such as the expectation by the medical profession that physicians will act or practice medicine in a reasonably prudent manner?

A) Duty to care
B) EMTALA
C) Expressed consent
D) Vicarious liability

Question 22

A patient might have a valid claim for false imprisonment in which of the following?

A) Appropriate restraint use for psychotic and aggressive behavior.
B) Hospital security refusing to allow a patient to leave without a family member.
C) Physician refusing to sign discharge papers because he feels the patient isn't ready.
D) Refusal of hospital staff to allow a baby to go home before medically stable.

Question 23

When someone makes a hand gesture that substitutes for words and defames a third party,the transitory gesture is considered assault.

Question 24

Publishing something in the newspaper that leads another to ridicule a person or diminish esteem and respect for that person is called libel.

Question 25

Which theory applies to a patient who refuses antibiotics for an upper respiratory infection and who later acquires pneumonia?

A) absolute negligence
B) contributory negligence
C) professional negligence
D) third-party negligence

Question 26

List the 4 elements that must be proven in a negligence claim.

Question 27

Which relationship begins with the credentialing process?

A) hospital-patient
B) hospital-physician
C) patient-physician
D) physician-patient

Question 28

Battery involves the physical contact of a person that results in an injury or offense.

Question 29

Which of the following must be demonstrated in order to charge invasion of privacy?

A) An unwarranted exploitation of an individual's personality occurred.
B) A patient's before and after surgical photos were published with his consent.
C) A public report accurately described the negative aspects of a person's activities.
D) A publication was released that described procedures performed.

Question 30

Medical staff privileges include ____.

A) failure to act prudently
B) intentional torts
C) lack of intent to do wrong
D) scope of physician's practice

Question 31

Medical abandonment may be applied to a patient who was _____.

A) discharged with continued chest pain and who later died of a heart attack upon returning to her home.
B) noncompliant regarding taking prescribed medications,for which his physician terminated their relationship.
C) unable to reach his physician who was out of town and who had arranged for his partner to be on call for his patients.
D) discharged with a diagnosis of false labor and who had a follow-up appointment with her obstetrician scheduled.

Question 32

Intentional torts are committed by a person who lacks the intent to do something wrong.

Question 33

A statute of limitations is _____.

A) a fixed time period in which a lawsuit must be brought
B) designed to protect the provider from lengthy legal actions
C) established to expire upon the patient's age of majority
D) prevention of a parent from suing for a birth injury

Question 34

The Johnson v.Misericordia Community Hospital legal case held that:

A) A psychotherapist had a duty to warn a person that his patient was making threats to harm a third person.
B) The hospital had a duty to require that patients be examined by members of the hospital staff who were skilled in the treatment required.
C) The hospital did not apply its own credentialing rules and,therefore,did not follow its own standard of care in determining the qualifications of physicians practicing at the facility.
D) When a physician withdraws from the contractual relationship with a patient,he must provide the patient with reasonable notice to obtain a new physician or alternative treatment.

Question 35

The notice of breach of confidentiality must include a(n)_____.

A) authorization for the release of protected health information
B) description of types of unsecured protected health information involved
C) offer of monetary compensation for the breach of protected health information
D) prohibition regarding redisclosure of the protected health information

Question 36

Tarasoff v.Regents of University of California held that:

A) A psychotherapist had a duty to warn a person that his patient was making threats to harm a third person.
B) The hospital had a duty to require that patients be examined by members of the hospital staff who were skilled in the treatment required.
C) The hospital did not apply its own credentialing rules and,therefore,did not follow its own standard of care in determining the qualifications of physicians practicing at the facility.
D) When a physician withdraws from the contractual relationship with a patient,he must provide the patient with reasonable notice to obtain a new physician or alternative treatment.

Question 37

Intentional infliction of emotional distress includes a defendant's conduct that is so extreme and outrageous that it causes the plaintiff to experience severe emotional distress,and the defendant engages in the conduct with the intent to cause emotional distress.

Question 38

Describe the difference between libel and slander.

Question 39

Good Samaritan statutes protect _____.

A) healthcare providers who work in hospital emergency departments
B) hospital and other healthcare workers from being sued for negligence
C) reckless emergency care treatment if delivered with the best of intentions
D) rescuers from claims related to the administration of unauthorized treatment

Question 40

List the 3 types of damages mentioned in the textbook.