RN Nursing · Legal Responsibilities · Practice question
A nurse is caring for a client who has decided to leave the facility against medical advice. After notifying the provider, which of the following actions is appropriate for the nurse to take?
-
Notify a social worker.
-
Summon a security guard.
-
✓
Explain the risks of leaving.
-
Complete an incident report.
Answer & explanation
Correct: Explain the risks of leaving.
When a client chooses to leave against medical advice (AMA), the nurse's priority after notifying the provider is to inform the client of the risks associated with leaving so the client can make an informed decision — this upholds informed consent and autonomy. Summoning a security guard to detain the client would be false imprisonment unless the client lacks decision-making capacity. An incident report may be completed internally but is not the priority nursing action toward the client. A social worker is not the immediate priority in this scenario. The nurse should also have the client sign the AMA form if possible.
Practise Legal Responsibilities questions
Work through full question sets with instant rationales, timed exams, and progress tracking.
Start practising freeRelated practice questions
- A nurse is teaching a class about providing care within the legal scope of practice to a group of nurses. The nurse should include which of the following procedures is outside the legal scope of practice for an RN?
- A nurse is providing client care in a hospital setting. Who has full legal responsibility and accountability for the nurse's actions?
- What is the primary purpose of standards of nursing practice?
- A nurse is teaching a group of newly hired nurses about professional liability. The nurse should include which of the following as an example of negligence?