In nursing, negligence refers to the unintentional failure of a nurse to act in a way that a sensible person would act in the same situation. Examples include leaving a baby unattended, incorrectly counting sponges or burning a patient with a heating pad.
Malpractice refers to any act that exceeds the limits of the nurse's professional standards. For example, nurses who prescribe drugs, give anesthesia or perform surgery would be going beyond the scope of nursing practice, thereby engaging in malpractice.
Assault occurs when a nurse either threatens or actually tries to touch a patient without his consent. Battery occurs when the nurse does touch the patient without his consent.
False imprisonment refers to the unnecessary use of restraints or restrictions that severely limit the mobility of patients. Legally, restraints can only be used when they are needed to treat a patient's medical symptoms.
Nurses can be held responsible for invasion of privacy if they violate the facility's confidentiality agreements. Nurses must hold each patient's care in complete confidentiality; information can only be shared with other members of the patient's health care team.