Abstract:
Background: The public continues to lodge complaints or even file charges of medical malpractice on services rendered by nurses, resulting in litigation. The study aimed to determine the perspectives of nurses in the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation in public hospitals in Thaba Chweu Local Municipality Mpumalanga province, South Africa. The objectives were to explore and describe the perspectives of nurses in the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation and to explore the challenges faced by nurses in the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation.
Methodology: Qualitative descriptive and explorative research designs were used to describe the perspectives of nurses in the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation in the Thaba Chweu Local Municipality of Mpumalanga province, South Africa. Purposive sampling was used to sample 10 professional nurses who knew strategies to avoid litigation. Data were collected using a predetermined set of questions and analysed using the reflexive thematic analysis method with the assistance of an independent coder.
Results: The study findings revealed the perspectives of nurses in the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation in public hospitals. The results were found to be the following: Nurses’ perspectives on the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation, the challenges nurses face when implementing strategies to avoid litigation, nurses' coping strategies when implementing strategies to avoid litigation, and suggestions to improve the implementation of strategies to avoid litigation.
Conclusions: In conclusion, Nurses implement various strategies to avoid litigation which include policies and guidelines, the use of triage to prioritise patients, working according to scope of practice, and record keeping. Nurses’ perspectives promote the principle of beneficence and non-maleficence to avoid litigation
