A cardiac patient recovering from open-heart surgery complains to a nurse that she was having mild chest pain and shortness of breath. The nurse is on her way to lunch. She decides to wait until after lunch to inform the patient’s treating physician. When she returns from lunch, she forgets about the patient’s earlier complaints and resumes her duties of caring for her other patients. Later that day the patient dies from cardiac complications. Discuss the legal and ethical issues in this case.
Submit the legal portion of your answer in the IRAC (Issue, Rule, Application and Conclusion) format. Refer to the syllabus for more information on the IRAC format. Your response should be at least 200 words in length. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations. Any references or citations used should be in APA style.