Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Intermediate Practice Exam

What legal term describes the documentation of a patient being "drunk" on a patient care form?

1. Defamation

2. Slander

3. Libel

4. Negligence

The correct answer is: Libel

The documentation of a patient being described as "drunk" on a patient care form can be classified as libel because this term refers to a written statement that unjustly harms an individual's reputation. In the context of patient care documentation, if the note suggesting a patient's intoxication is included in the official records, it represents a written communication that could potentially damage the patient's character or social standing, especially if it is not substantiated by evidence or if it misrepresents the patient's true condition. Defamation pertains to harmful statements in both written (libel) and spoken (slander) forms, and while slander refers specifically to spoken statements, the documentation on a patient care form falls under the written category, which is why libel is the appropriate legal term in this case. Negligence, on the other hand, refers to a failure to act with the care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise, which isn't directly relevant to the act of documenting a patient's condition in a care form.