All you doctors and nurses...?

Question

I have noticed a lot of doctors and nurses answer questions (esp in health) and identify themselves as a doctor or nurse. I too am a nurse but don't say that i am for fear of possible repercussions. What i mean is say someone asked what is good for period pain and u answered ibprofen. Then that person took it and was either alergic or had severe asthma (i have seen someone end up in PICU from taking ibprofen whilst also being a severe asthmatic). They could possibly sue you for that advice? i just want to know what is and isn't possible. I am always very careful with my answers but i would answer more if i didn't have this fear hanging over my head. Am i just parinoid?

Answer 1

This is a very good question!! It truly is amazing in this day an age just how liable people are. However, on the Internet you are entitled to privacy rights. That is why you have the option of "hiding" your email address and contact information. If you were suspected of a violent crime, that information could be required of Yahoo to be submitted as evidence. However, advice that you gave on the Internet that may cause an allergic reaction, would not constitute a violent crime. The advice that you are giving is not a substitute for medical attention. If you were charging money for your advice, or had your own webpage with advice on it concerning these things, your liability would be greater. In summation, I would wager that yahoo would be much more liable than you for anything that went wrong. It is after all there sight. I hope this helped.. It sounds like your a caring person, who likes giving advice.. Good luck!!

Answer 2

I work in the medical field, No...... I am not a nurse or a doctor, But I do work with the patients and their medications. For the State Law and for all procedures in any nursing home or hospital, the first thing to do is before a person gives any meds to a patient they should read their med sheet, or you can go off their physicians orders to make sure they will not have a reaction or to be allergic to the meds given. If the meds was given and that person had the reaction, if the nurse or doctor did not report the problem and take care of the problem, if they did not follow the proper procedures than YES a law suit would be advised........... Good Luck....

Answer 3

I don't identify myself as a nurse either because I'm answering questions as an individual and not a nurse. Yes, some of my replies may be from my education, but I'm not working on this site as a nurse, so I find no reason in telling others that I am one when I answer a question. I'm just stating my opinion.

About the allergic reaction to ibrophen.....even if a doctor in person stated to take this I do not believe its a malpractice case unless of course the patient stated beforehand they were allergic.

While we give advice, we can't give out prescriptions, etc. Anyone posting on this site knows that they are only getting opinions and its up to them to check out these opinions before they put them into action. I can't see any malpractice in givng answers at all, unless of course one states I'm a nurse or doctor so do what I say. That it is questionable. So keep giving out opinions and leaving out that you are a nurse and you should be fine.

Answer 4

i identify myself as a nurse b/c i want people to know that i have the education to back my advise up and not just randomly pulling it out of the air.

in addition-what we give on here is ADVISE-the person asking the question doesn't have to take it and we are protected by privacy laws here on the internet. i always advise a person to seek medical attention through either the er or their primary dr for serious issues and only advise taking over the counter meds.

as far as allergies go-this is NOT malpractice or a liability issue on our part-if the person KNOWS they are allergic to something-then they shouldn't take it, if they don't-then it's the same as any other unknown allergy-won't know you have the allergy until it happens. I see this on my floor all the time-if a patient reacts to a medication that there is no known allergy for-the hospital or it's providers are NOT liable for the reaction. the medication is stopped, the allergy treated, and the chart noted of the allergy and the reaction......

Answer 5

I am a little paranoid, but given that this is a public forum and any old person can put any old answer up here I think the possibility for being sued is low.

Nevertheless, I usually couch my advice with words that give me a bit of lee-way ... "often", "seldom", "most commonly" ... and when talking about medication often will put in little phrases like "if you are not allergic" or "if you can have it" to remind the reader that the onus is on them to use a bit of common sense.

Answer 6

i agree with you, and i likewise don't identify my profession when answering. here's where you might be a little paranoid however- you're assuming that the litigant could actually prove your identity if they decided to sue you for bad advice.

it seems easy to claim that while your yahoo id was logged in on an unsecured computer, someone decided to post some answers posing as you... but of course there's probably some slimebag out there willing to try to get a quick payday, so it's always best to be careful, right?

Answer 7

Hey, I worked in a Med-Surge Hospital for ten yrs and a Nursing Home for nine yrs. Most Dr's think they are hot crap. You are suppose to know what they are thinking and how to read their scribble. They need to speak clearer and write more legible.

Answer 8

i dont see how you can be traceable, but i see where youre coming from, again, im not sure could the establishment of a duty of care be argued even if it was traceable....yahoo arent going to release your info to another user id imagine.