Nursing liability includes breaches of which elements?

• A. Duty
• B. Negligence
• C. Breaches of standard care, practice, monitoring and communication
• D. Liability

Answer: (C)

The concept being tested is what kinds of breaches create nursing liability. In practice, liability comes from concrete failures to meet professional standards, not just from having a duty or from labeling something as negligence. The best answer highlights breaches of the standard of care, nursing practice, monitoring, and communication. These areas represent the specific ways a nurse can fall below what is reasonably expected: not following established protocols, performing or supervising care improperly, failing to monitor a patient adequately, and failing to communicate critical information to patients, families, or the health care team. Each of these breaches can lead to harm and thus to liability.

While duty describes the obligation a nurse owes to a patient, and negligence is the general idea of failing to meet the standard, they are broader concepts. Liability is the condition of being legally responsible for harm. The focus here is on the actual breaches—the actions or omissions in standard care, practice, monitoring, and communication—that directly give rise to liability.