ED Legal Letter articles from November 2008

ED Legal Letter archives from November 2008

EMTALA Ends Once Patient is "Admitted" to the Hospital.
November 1, 2008... EMTALA Ends Once Patient is "Admitted" to the Hospital Courts Agree with CMS By Robert A. Bitterman, MD, JD, FACEP, Contributing Editor In the early civil cases litigated under the law in the 1990s, the courts held that EMTALA's...

Should you restrain your patient? Know legal risks.
November 1, 2008... Should you restrain your patient? Know legal risks ED doctors "walk a tightrope" You find yourself wrestling with an uncooperative, intoxicated trauma patient who removes his own cervical collar. It's easy to see that this scenario is...

Special Report: The difficult airway: Part I.
November 1, 2008... SPECIAL REPORT The difficult airway: Part I Initial intubation methods By Mark J. Greenwood, DO, JD, FAAEM, FCLM, Flight Physician, Aero Med Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Airway management that results in a...

Could The Joint Commission's antibiotic standard get you sued?
November 1, 2008... Could The Joint Commission's antibiotic standard get you sued? Requirement results in "a host of legal problems" An elderly man comes to your ED and is admitted to the hospital with severe dehydration and fever of unknown origin. Two...

CNE/CME Questions.
November 1, 2008... CNE/CME Questions 45. Which is true regarding legal risks of patients requiring restraint? A. Restraining a patient against his/her will cannot be considered a potential battery. b. ED patients are more likely to sue if they are...