Case Law Update: Nurse’s Importance in Nursing Homes
One state’s appellate court tackled a question of whether, as a matter of law, a nurse is or is not qualified to render a medical diagnosis on a claim of wrongful death. The circuit court stated that a nurse is not qualified to render a medical opinion with respect to causation. The undisputed facts of the case were that the victim fell and endured bedsores as a result of that fall. A nurse was then scheduled to testify as to the cause of death. The case then went to the appellate court to determine the nurse’s responsibility in a nursing home. The appellate court found that given the scope of nursing care under the direction of a nursing administrator their statute does not prohibit a nurse’s testimony on the issue of causation. Yet the court stated that since this specific case dealt with wrongful death, the nurse was not qualified to testify regarding the cause of death. This case will greatly impact nursing home abuse cases. To read the nursing home negligence case, please click the link.
