Liability for Premises and Personnel房屋与人员的责任.pptVIP

Liability for Premises and Personnel Injuries to patients while on the premises of a practitioner is a relatively stable cause of liability claims.The patients of health care practitioners are legally termed invitees. One in possession of land owes a duty to invitees to protect them from:? dangers that the one in possession is aware of; and? dangers that the one in possession should have discovered with reasonable diligence This legal protection to invitees extends to the “area of invitation”, which includes the office, areas of ingress and egress, furniture, equipment, and any other items that may present a hazard or cause injury.“Slip and fall” injuriesare the most common cause of liability claimsarising from premises. A patient who used a crutch because of an injured leg went to an ophthalmologist’s office, and his pupils were dilated as part of the examination. When the visit was concluded the patient left the office and entered the hallway, where his crutch slipped on a spot mopped minutes before by a janitor, causing him to fall and injure his other leg. There was no sign or other warning that the flooring was wet. He sued the janitorial service and the landlord, and they were both held to be liable for his injuries. Thus an optometrist is obligated to: warn the patient of dangers of which the optometrist is aware inspect the premises for patent defects that could cause injury or for latent defects that are discoverable with reasonable diligence take reasonable precautions to protect the patient against dangers that are foreseeable Dilation of the pupil may contribute to an injury on the premises, particularly a slip and fall.For this reason, elderly patients or individuals with infirmities may need to be assisted after pupillary dilation, and care should be taken to ensure that they receive mydriatic spectacles.Dilated (and cyclopleged) uncorrected hyperopes may also require assistance. Example case: “slip and fall” on the office pr