GOOD SAMARITAN ACT: MUNTINLUPA

Chapter 1

Introduction

People have different perception when it comes to generosity, some are selfish some are not and others are hesitant. For us nurses, we are obliged to help people in terms of their medical needs but how are we going to do that when we are not in the actual scene?

When it comes to an accident, life and death is just a string apart and every second is very crucial to the victim. Here in the Philippines, any person who is around the crime scene is not allowed to help or to touch the victim if he is not a trained medical professional. The by-standers can only activate the emergency system for help and wait for the authorities’ response that is why survival rate drops. In other country, they are able to help victims of an accident without being afraid to be sued for any unintentional injury or wrongful actions that they commit in helping a victim. This is because they are protected by the “Good Samaritan Law”, it is a law that prevents a rescuer who has voluntarily helped a victim in distress from being successfully sued for ‘wrongdoing’. Its purpose is to keep people from being reluctant to help a stranger in need for fear of legal repercussions if they were to make some mistake in treatment (Devereaux, 2007).

Statement of the problem

The researchers will study the a number of medical professionals or those who have completed Red Cross training whom Good Samaritan Law may only apply. Specially, it seek to answer to the following questions:

What is the profile of the health care professional in terms of:

1.1 Age

1.2 Sex

1.3Length of service

1.4 Civil status

1.5 Religion

1.6 Area of affiliation

How do health care professionals perceived?

2.1 Perceived Severity

2.2 Perceived Barrier

2.3 Perceived Benefits

2.4 Cues to Action

2.5 Other Variables

2.6 Self Efficacy

Does the profile of the respondents related to the perception of the good Samaritan Act?

Hypotheses

The researchers formulated the following hypotheses:

H1: There significant relationship between perception and application of Good Samaritan Act.

H2: The profile of the respondents differ from the application of Good Samaritan Act

Significance of the Study

The purpose of this study is to determine the significant relationship about the perception and the application of Good Samaritan Act of the Healthcare professionals practicing in the Philippines. This study may provide ideas and could view Healthcare professional belief about Good Samaritan Act whether this could provide improvement in medical and emergency cases. In Nursing Practice this may provide as help to develop their nursing skills and knowledge in providing first aids and basic life support.

This study could benefit clients by giving information and knowledge which can be obtained through out the research process and by the end of the research. The clients could acquire knowledge and awareness about the Good Samaritan Act, their rights and the do’s and don’ts of the Healthcare professionals.

In Nursing Education this may impart knowledge to the people in nursing field about their duties and obligation in providing care to an emergency situation.

This study could benefit students in giving information and knowledge about the Healthcare professionals’ belief on Good Samaritan Act and as well as the Act itself. It is also beneficial for students to give importance to any person that they will render help to know there is obligation that to be careful. The students could also have a chance to relate this research to their education.

This study could benefit the Nursing practice through proper acknowledgment how to respond in emergency cases and its implication.

Future Nursing Researchers may also be benefited by this study as it may be a reference material for further studies.

Scope, Limitations, and Delimitations

This study was intended to discuss Good Samaritan Act in medical fields. The researchers will focus their investigation on the survey of the health care professional’s belief and application with regards to Good Samaritan Act in Muntinlupa City.

This study was confined to Healthcare Professionals particularly Registered Nurses, Physicians, Midwives and Red Cross Volunteers regardless of age, sex and race. The researchers focused on the applications and beliefs of the healthcare professionals in practicing Good Samaritan Act with regards to their exposures to different hospitals and community particularly in Muntinlupa City. Individuals may feel the need to present themselves in a more socially acceptable light, and may report to be more informed than they really are. Thus, the findings of this study rely solely on the respondents’ responses.

This study is not applicable to those who are Undergraduate, Medical Technologists, Pharmacists, Dentists, Psychologists and other non healthcare professionals.

Conceptual Framework

Figure 1. The Paradigm shows the flow of the Profile of Health Care Professional and the Perception of Good Samaritan Act.

This relationship is enclosed with a square figures. The relationship is viewed as continuous. Continuous block process was used to show a progression or sequential step in a task, process or a workflow. The first box is about the profile of healthcare professional, the middle box is the process of input and output , and the last box is about the perception of it. Each box can influence and be influenced by other box of the diagram. The continuous process of the box, is the beginning of the analysis of the perception of the Health Care Professional and Good Samaritan Act.

Definition of Terms

The following terms were define conceptually and operationally in relate to the study.

Affiliation- A person, organization, or establishment associated with another as a subordinate, subsidiary, or member. 1

Age- The length of time that one has existed or simply the duration of life. 2

Application of Good Samaritan Act- The act of directing or referring something to a good Samaritan act to discover or illustrate agreement or disagreement, fitness, or correspondence. 3

Consent- To consent means to give approval and to agree by free will. Both parties must be fully conscious and have clearly communicated their consent and in the end signed a legal document. 4

Emergency medical services – These are services dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care and/or transport to definitive care, to patients with illnesses and injuries which the patient, or the medical practitioner, believes constitutes a medical emergency. 5

First Aider- First aiders are the one who gives initial care to an illness or injured person. It generally consists of a series of simple and in some cases, potentially life-saving techniques that an individual can be trained to perform with minimal equipment. 6

Good Samaritan Act- laws or acts protecting those who choose to serve and tend to others who are injured or ill. They are intended to reduce bystanders’ hesitation to assist, for fear of being sued or prosecuted for unintentional injury or wrongful death. 7

Health Care Professionals- Health care professional means a person who is legally competent to diagnose and/or treat the particular medical condition or conditions which are the basis of the accommodation request. 8

Liability- Means something that is a hindrance or puts an individual or groups at a disadvantage or something that someone is responsible for. 12

Midwives- A person, usually a woman, who is trained to assist women in childbirth. 9

Negligence- It is the quality of being negligent or a failure to act. It means that someone was careless and as a result of that someone was injured. 10

Obligation- The state, fact, or feeling of being indebted to another for a special service or favor received. A social, legal, or moral requirement, such as a duty, contract, or promise that compels one to follow or avoid a particular course of action. 11

Perceived Benefits- Something that promotes or enhances well- being; an advantage that an individual may received. 16

Perceived Barriers- Anything that prevents or obstruct passage, access, or progress. 172

Perceived Severity- The act or an instance of severe behavior, especially punishment. 13

Physicians- A physician is a person who has studied in the medical field. They are educated and taught to take care of patients in a certain field or specialty. A person licensed to practice medicine. 14

Registered Nurses- A registered nurse is a licensed nurse who works in hospitals and doctor’s offices assisting patients. 15

Self Efficacy- Variety of ways; as the belief that one is capable of performing in a certain manner to attain certain goals. 16

Volunteers- It is an individual willing to sacrifice his/her time under international humanitarian organization which aim is to protect the human life and health without any discrimination based on sex, nationality or race. 17

Notes

1. Gulam H, Devereaux J (2007). “A brief primer on Good Samaritan Law for health care professionals”

2.http://chcr.umich.edu/how_we_do_it/health_theories/healththeories2/chcr_document_view

Chapter II

CHAPTER 2

Review of Related Literature and Studies

This chapter presents a review of related literature and studies which helped the researchers pursue the study.

Foreign Literature:

The Good Samaritan law is not found on the statute books, but has been a concept that courts have applied as public policy. However, this has recently changed in all the states and territories in Australia with the codification of Good Samaritan law. This paper is a timely reminder for health practitioners of the doctrine of the Good Samaritan, as well as the relative legal uncertainty of rescue at common law. The doctrine of Good Samaritan is a principle that works to prevent a rescuer who has voluntarily assisted a person in distress from being successfully sued for a “wrongdoing”. Despite no case law directly addressing the liability of a health care professional for failing to render assistance in a Good Samaritan situation, there are medical practitioners being found liable for damages and/or guilty of professional misconduct for failing to respond to requests for assistance. There has been no known case where a Medical practitioner (or health care professional) has been held liable for providing emergency care in good faith to a stranger. The codification of the doctrine of Good Samaritan law in the various jurisdictions in Australia goes some way towards providing protection from legal action for those persons (including health care professionals) who act in good faith to assist those in danger. There is no doubt that this legislative codification is a social good – we must be willing to help others who are injured or in distress, without risk to ourselves, including from a legal perspective. 1

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Most Good Samaritan statutes rely on the concepts of ordinary negligence and gross negligence. “Ordinary” negligence means that the individual providing aid did not act as a reasonable health care provider would under similar circumstances. Contrast that with “gross” negligence, which generally means not only that the individual did not conform to the accepted standard of care, but also that his or her actions rose to the level of being willful, wanton or even malicious. Although there has never been a successful case against a physician who claimed Good Samaritan protection after providing emergency care outside a hospital, many physicians feel concerned about the legal consequences that might befall them in these situations. The fact is that all 50 US states have some type of law that seeks to encourage medical professionals to act as Good Samaritans by offering certain protections. 2

What can be said about what nurses ought to do in terms of truth telling and caring?

The essence of caring, at least in this article, is found in the story of the Good Samaritan. Nurses care when they are present with another with a closeness that evokes compassion. Hence, the caring nurse is focused on ‘the other’ so that ‘the other’s’ welfare is paramount. This ‘other regardingness’ to which the caring nurse gives precedence means becoming emotionally involved to an extent that the nurse strives to be like the Samaritan. Nurses ought to respond in a caring way that is reasonable rather than exact. Strict adherence to a principle or rule of obligation may mean acting in a way that is indicative of the holy men, as described in the parable of the Good Samaritan. A caring nurse responding virtuously acts by being compassionate, which may mean for a time accepting the prima facie nature of the rules or principles of truth telling. 3

Although there has never been a successful case against a physician who claimed Good Samaritan protection after providing emergency care outside a hospital, many physicians feel concerned about the legal consequences that might befall them in these situations. The fact is that all 50 US states have some type of law that seeks to encourage medical professionals to act as Good Samaritans by offering certain protections. The purpose of this article is to explain the basics of these laws, as well as physicians’ ethical duties, so that when they encounter opportunities to act as a Good Samaritan, they will have a better understanding of what they’re getting into. The odds of being successfully sued for malpractice as a result of providing Good Samaritan care are stacked well in their favor, so much so that the fear of litigation should not be a factor in their decision about whether to help when the situation presents itself. 4

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Random acts of kindness are always impressive. They let people know that there are good people in the world who care about others. Good deeds also give a sense of security; they tell that everyone lives in a world where at least people look out for others. People helping other people is what any civilized society is all about. If you do your share selflessly, the world would be a better place. Helping others is a sign of strength and decency and it is what makes one a better person. 5

Foreign Studies:

Global Good Samaritans looks at the reasons why and how some states promote human rights internationally, arguing that humanitarian internationalism is more than episodic altruism-it is a pattern of persistent principled politics. Human rights as a principled foreign policy defies the realist prediction of untrammeled pursuit of national interest, and suggests the utility of constructivist approaches that investigate the role of ideas, identities, and influences on state action. Brysk shows how a diverse set of democratic middle powers, inspired by visionary leaders and strong civil societies, came to see the linkage between their long-term interest and the common good. She concludes that state promotion of global human rights may be an option for many more members of the international community and that the international human rights regime can be strengthened at the interstate level, alongside social movement campaigns and the struggle for the democratization of global governance. 6

The Good Samaritan and the registered nurse both respond in a manner that is fitting. This caring response, as an ethic of the fitting, acknowledges that rules alone do not guarantee the most ethically justifiable outcomes. Rather, within this ethic of the fitting, at times the nurse ought to respond with a sense of compassion that befits the moment rather than adhere to a rule at all costs. The holy men in the parable of the Good Samaritan concern themselves with the external goods of policy and status. In subordinating themselves to the external goods, they care less. However, the Samaritan recognizes what is due to a fellow human being and takes action to alleviate another’s suffering. It is clear that the caring depicted here is founded on the virtue of compassion. Hence, the caring nurse is focused on ‘the other’ so that ‘the other’s’ welfare is paramount. This ‘other regardingness’ to which the caring nurse gives precedence means becoming emotionally involved to an extent that the nurse strives to be like the Samaritan. Nurses ought to respond in a caring way that is reasonable rather than exact. Strict adherence to a principle or rule of obligation may mean acting in a way that is indicative of the holy men, as described in the parable of the Good Samaritan. A caring nurse responding virtuously acts by being compassionate, this may mean for a time accepting the prima facie nature of the rules or principles of truth telling. 7

Benjamin S. Abella, MD, MPhil, Clinical Research Director of Penn’s Center for Resuscitation Science and Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine, says bystanders can play a critical role in saving lives by performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation during the 150,000 cardiac arrests that occur each year outside of hospitals in the United States.

Studies show that only 15 to 30 percent of sudden cardiac arrest victims receive bystander CPR before emergency personnel arrive, Abella says. But chances for survival plummet as minutes tick by without any blood circulating through the body. Early bystander CPR, however, doubles to triples survival rates. 8

Notes

Hyder Gulam, John Devereux. Australian Health Review. Sydney: Aug 2007. Vol. 31, Iss. 3; pg. 478, 5 pgs

Robert J Dachs, Jay M Elias. Family Practice Management. Leawood: Apr 2008. Vol. 15, Iss. 4; pg. 37, 4 pgs

Anthony Tuckett, NURSING PRACTICE: COMPASSIONATE DECEPTION AND THE GOOD SAMARITAN

Robert J Dachs, Jay M Elias. Family Practice Management. Leawood: Apr 2008. Vol. 15, Iss. 4; pg. 37, 4 pgs

Charles S Lauer. Modern Healthcare. Chicago: Sep 13, 2004. Vol. 34, Iss. 37; pg. 30, 1 pgs

.Alison Brysk, Global Good Samaritans:Human Rights as Foreign Policy

7.http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=9&did=800156321&SrchMode=1&sid=11&Fmt=6&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1278353293&clientId=72710

8.http://www.news-medical.net/news/2008/01/15/34307.aspx

Chapter III

Survey Questionnaire for Health Care Professionals with Completed Red Cross Training

The researchers are conducting a study on Health care Professionals with completed Red Cross Training in Muntinlupa City about their perception on Good Samaritan Act. It will measure the respondent’s perception about Good Samaritan Act and the extent of their knowledge about this and their application.

To enable the researcher to make the necessary conclusions and recommendations for this study, it would be very much appreciated if you answer all the items in this questionnaire.

Information given will be treated in strictest confidence.

Thank you,

Part I:

Name :____________________________( optional)

Age: [ ] 20-25 [ ] 36-40 [ ] 51-55

[ ] 26-30 [ ] 41-45 [ ] 56-60

[ ] 31-35 [ ] 46-50 [ ] 61 and above

Gender: [ ] Female Civil Status: [ ] single

[ ] Male [ ] married [ ] widowed

Religion: [ ] Roman Catholic [ ] Baptist

[ ] Christian [ ] Protestant

[ ] Muslim [ ] others: __________

Location of Affiliation: [ ] public [ ] private

[ ] hospital

[ ] clinic

[ ] health center

[ ] self employed

Part II:

ALWAYS

SOMETIMES

OFTEN TIMES

SELDOM

NEVER

If you see a patient in critical condition, are you willing to help?

Do you prefer in helping a victim with a higher survival rate than those who is more critical?

Do you expect anything in return for your help?

Do you believe that Good Samaritan act will improve person’s survival in emergency case?

Do bystander is a hindrance in helping in an emergency situation?

Do you feel nervous when there is an emergency situation?

Is the gender of the victim contributes to be a rescuer when there is an emergency situation?

Are you willing to help whenever there is an emergency situation?

In rendering care, do you prioritize your safety before doing such actions?

Does your mood affect your ability in rendering care to a victim?

Does the place of the emergency affect you in rendering help?

Are you prepared in an emergency situation?

Do you believe that you are well equipped?

PART III

ALWAYS

SOMETIMES

OFTEN TIMES

SELDOM

NEVER

Do you prefer to help a family member or friend when there is an emergency situation?

Is there a difference in level of care in rendering a help to a relative and to a mere stranger?

Do you secure consent before rendering care?

Does a consent form will excuse you for being liable to your actions?

In case of an emergency, are you willing to help those in need?

Are you willing to help a victim without expecting anything in return?

Does the place of the emergency affect you in rendering care?

Do you secure your safety when rendering help?

Do you familiarize yourself in the laws applied in the area of emergency case?

Do you apply your actions in rendering help from the statue of constitution?

PART IV:

ALWAYS

SOMETIMES

OFTEN TIMES

SELDOM

NEVER

Do you apply your health beliefs in giving care?

Does your belief affect your application of rendering care?

PART V:

ALWAYS

SOMETIMES

OFTEN TIMES

SELDOM

NEVER

Does the competency of a health care provider deteriorate as aged?

After a long period of rest in practising, does the competency of a health care provider deteriorates?