An ideal introduction to the legal and ethical issues in the healthcare workplace, this authoritative guide explores a wide range of health care topics-- from tort reform and healthcare ethics to patient rights and managed care. With over 40 years of experience as an administrator, consultant, and surveyor across 650 hospitals, author George D. Pozgar provides a uniquely accessible tool for grasping the legal complexities of health care through an array or real-life case studies, precedent-making court cases, and key statistical data. Features case studies detailing real world legal issues in healthcare settings, court cases help illustrate and explain both the origin of laws and policies, as well as their current day applications in the healthcare field, and discussion of past and current healthcare reform and policy changes which provide context for the current legal issues in healthcare. Two new chapters, Patients Rights and Responsibilities and Human Resources, explore these topics in greater depth.

t Hospitals through the ages -- $t Government, law, and ethics -- $t Tort law : negligence -- $t Intentional torts -- $t Tort reform and risk reduction -- $t Criminal aspects of health care -- $t Contracts and antitrust -- $t Civil procedure and trial practice -- $t Corporate structure and legal issues -- $t Medical staff organization and malpractice -- $t Nursing and the law -- $t Hospital departments and allied professionals -- $t Information management and patient records -- $t Patient consent -- $t Patient rights and responsibilities -- $t Healthcare ethics -- $t Procreation and ethical dilemmas -- $t End-of-life issues -- $t Legal reporting requirements -- $t Human resources -- $t Managed care and national health insurance -- $t Professional liability insurance.