Make it stand out
Legal Matters
Legal Advice & Expert Medical Witness
for students
Considering a career in EM? The laws and landmark cases are essential to know when entering what could be a legal minefield.
for practicing clinicians
Advance your practice and (re)learn important legal concepts that are often forgotten among the many things a practicing PA must know.
for other professionals
Below, you will find legal definitions, advice on adhering to the standard of care, and clarity on the role of PAs in the greater medical community.
Legal Concepts
The bulk of my PA education was spent acquisition of medical knowledge and technical skills with relatively little energy and focus left over for paying attention to and learning legal matters.
All that changed very quickly when I actually started practicing EM. It was immediately apparent that I needed a definitive understanding of such concepts as…
Capacity
Healthcare proxy
Advanced directives
EMTALA
AMA
…and more
These are also very important in my documentation and daily patient interactions. The following blogs are my own interpretation and understanding of the above concepts and legal matters. Writing these has helped me clarify these laws in my practice and, as usual, I have several recommendations and templates that I use, and you can adopt, in your documentation to help you become efficient and accurate.
