Legal and Ethics Guidance
The role of the advanced nurse practitioner is a very welcome and dynamic development that assists in the delivery of quality patient centred care. There are, however, challenges in establishing these roles. In particular, many advanced practitioners struggle with the legal and ethical issues associated with their role often perceiving that they are more susceptible to legal action than other nurses because of their increased autonomy and the extended or expanded range of activities they are undertaking. There are, however, no distinctions between advanced nurse practitioners and other nurses in the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Code of Conduct, Performance and Ethics (NMC, 2008). Advanced nurse practitioners therefore need to be familiar with the NMC Code and the expectation that they take responsibility and are accountable for their own actions and recognise and act within the limits of their competence and the boundaries of their own practice. This section aims to raise awareness of the responsibilities and accountability of the advanced nurse in meeting their ethical and legal obligations.
A wide variety of evidence has been gathered from a range of sources including; acts of parliament, key legal court actions, and publications from regulatory bodies together with leading texts relating to legal, professional and healthcare issues and advanced practice. The evidence arising from seminal legal actions over the past 50 years refer to the main practitioner responsible for patient care at the centre of the legal action, in many instances a doctor. As such the judgements handed down by the court refer to the practice of the doctor. It should be noted that the principles of many of these leading court actions continue to have relevance today and have implications for advanced nurse practitioners.
