Nurses Assault by Patient - Article Example

It is the nurse’s right to press assault charges against the patient for the injuries sustained as a result of the attack by the patient. In case she decides to press charges, Peggy should inform the police within the shortest time possible. She should, however, first of all, start by filling out an occurrence report. It is also important that the nurse present a written report to the supervisor and ensure that all details of the assault are given.

The decision on whether the patient should be charged or not lies with the district attorney as well as the police who are required to fully investigate the case. This decision is based on two main aspects. One such aspect is whether the patient’s actions and ability to cause harm were predictable, while the second is related to the mental competency of the patient (Morales, 2012).

In case the injuries sustained by the nurse are severe or permanent then she has a right to press civil charges and seek to be compensated financially. Nurses have a right to be compensated for any injuries incurred in the undertaking of their job, provided that they were acting by the set code of practice while sustaining the injury. In this case, Peggy deserves to be compensated for the injuries she sustained from the assault. The compensation is meant to cater for any medical and treatment expenses that will be incurred as well as for any amount of wages she will lose as a result of the sustained injury to her and her unborn baby.

The health can be held liable for the patient’s actions and the injuries sustained by Peggy. One way through which they are liable is their failure to protect their staff from potential harm. Additionally, the facility can be said to have failed by admitting more patients than the facility can handle. According to the case, the patient had been taken to the medical-surgical unit because there was no free bed available in the psychiatric facility. Having been suicidal, the patient may have been having various mental issues and posed a danger not just to himself, but also to others (Gamham, 2001). In this case, the facility had a duty to ensure safety, both for the patient and for the other staff members (National  Institute for Occupational  Safety and Health, 2002). The psychiatric unit is specially created to ensure that patients likely to cause harm to others or themselves are prevented from causing that harm. Additionally, the nurses and other personnel working in this unit are well-trained in handling the patients they receive; hence, they take all precautionary measures to ensure that both they and the patients are safe. Some of the facilities and equipment available in the psychiatric unit may not be available in other units of the hospital, while at the same time, nurses and staff members working outside the psychiatric unit may lack the knowledge and experience on how to deal with psychiatric patients. In this, admitting the patient to the medical-surgical unit exposed the nurses within that unit to harm by the patient.

Another reason why the facility can be found liable for the occurrence is their failure to inform Peggy of the presence of the patient in the medical-surgical unit. Peggy had a right to be informed of the patient’s admission to the medical surgical unit and the patient’s condition of illness. She should have been informed if the patient posed any harm to her or other staff members within the unit. By acquiring such information, then the nurse would have been aware of the possible reaction of the patient, and in turn, be more careful with how she interacted with the patient.