Legal Problems in Emergency Medicine

All professionals now require a working knowledge of the law relating to their subject. This text offers practical guidance specifically for the doctor, nurse, manager or lawyer faced with legal difficulties arising out of a medical emergency.

Legal Problems in Emergency Medicine is a small, practical book which covers a large, complex subject. It is the first book to offer practical guidance specifically for the doctor, nurse, manager, or lawyer faced with legal difficulties arising out of a medical emergency. ''Ignorance of the law is no excuse'', and all professionals now require a working knowledge of the law relating to their subject. Those practising Emergency Medicine are no exception, whether casualty officers, hospital specialists, general practitioners, or nursing or paramedical staff. The first part of this book offers guidance, with examples, for those ''on the spot'' in difficult situations, whilst the second part consists of a condensed but authoritative summary of the various legal topics comprising emergency medicine law. Written in plain language, it makes several complex and difficult areas of the law accessible to the legal layman-yet it does not avoid more complicated issues and is fully reference so that the truth of each statement can be validated. Readers will benefit from the extensive working knowledge of a unique team of authors: an emergency physician who has practised at the English Bar, and a practising solicitor.