NURSES IN NORTH CAROLINA NOW SUBJECT TO MALPRACTICE LIABILITY

Medical malpractice liability is catching up to nursing in the State of North Carolina.

The North Carolina Supreme Court in 1932 held that a nurse who obeys the orders of a physician in charge of a patient is not ordinarily liable. (Byrd v. Hospital, 202 N.C. 337 (1932).

That is right, a nurse who follows the orders of a physician has not had any medical malpractice liability exposure in North Carolina since 1932 with one exception.

The only exception was that the order was obviously negligent and any reasonable nurse would know that injury would result.

Only then would a nurse be subject to liability for carrying out the order.

Now, a century later the North Carolina Supreme Court has reversed the Byrd decision.