Question

You are caring for an alert, oriented 47-year-old patient who is recovering from abdominal surgery. The patient becomes angry and upset and says, Im leaving this hospital. Remove my IV and surgical drains or I will do it myself. In order to keep him from removing his lines and leaving the hospital, you apply bilateral wrist restraints until you can contact the physician for an order for patient restraint. This is an example of which of the following?

1) Assault and battery
2) Felony
3) False imprisonment
4) Quasi-intentional tort

Answer 1

Applying restraints without consent or proper authority to a patient wanting to leave the hospital could constitute false imprisonment,(option 3) a legal issue that requires careful handling to ensure patient rights are not violated.

Step-by-step explanation:

The scenario described involves applying bilateral wrist restraints on a conscious and coherent patient who expresses the desire to leave the hospital against medical advice, which could be interpreted as false imprisonment. False imprisonment occurs when someone restricts another person's freedom of movement without consent, authority, or justification. Although the intention might be to prevent harm to the patient, the action could result in a legal issue if not carried out with a proper medical order or under appropriate legal and medical guidelines.