Ethical And Legal Implications Of Prescribing Drug HW
Four parties, two dimensions each, and a prevention strategy at the end. The pharmacist is the party most papers forget, and they are the one with an independent legal duty.
Editorial process
Last reviewed · August 22, 2026
Four parties, and the pharmacist has an independent duty
The structure is given to you and it is worth following literally, because the four parties are separately markable and they are not equally easy. The prescriber's implications are the ones everyone writes: accountability for the decision, the scope of prescriptive authority granted by the state, the duty to disclose an error, and the ethical obligations of non-maleficence and veracity. The pharmacist is the party most papers omit and the one with the most interesting position, because a pharmacist has an independent professional duty to review, to catch an inappropriate dose or interaction, and to contact the prescriber, which means the error is usually a failure of two checks rather than one. The patient's implications are consent, autonomy and the right to know what happened, and the family's are surrogate decision-making, the limits of what may be disclosed to them, and their role when the patient is a child or lacks capacity.
Keep the two dimensions distinct throughout, since the brief names them separately and merging them costs marks. Legal implications concern licensure action, malpractice liability, state prescribing regulations and reporting duties, and they vary by jurisdiction so you should cite your own. Ethical implications concern the principles and often ask more than the law does; disclosure is the sharpest example, because the duty to tell a patient about an error that caused no harm is ethically well supported and legally much less compelled. Then treat the prevention strategy as a systems answer rather than a resolution to be careful. Independent double-checks for high-risk medications, clinical decision support with interaction and dose checking, avoiding error-prone abbreviations, teach-back at the point of prescribing, reconciling medications at every transition, and reporting into a non-punitive system are the mechanisms that actually reduce error rates, because each removes a way for the error to reach the patient rather than asking someone to try harder.
Likely learning objectives
- Analyse a scenario from four separate stakeholder positions.
- Recognise the pharmacist's independent professional duty.
- Keep legal and ethical implications distinct.
- Propose systems-level error prevention rather than individual vigilance.
Assignment instructions
Read the full question
Review every instruction before using the planning guidance that follows.
What type of drug should you prescribe based on your patient’s diagnosis? How much of the drug should the patient receive? How often should the drug be administered? When should the drug not be prescribed? Are there individual patient factors that could create complications when taking the drug? Should you be prescribing drugs to thispatient? These are some of the questions you might consider when selecting a treatment plan for a patient. As an advanced practice nurse prescribing drugs, you are held accountable for people’s lives on a daily basis. Patients and their families will often place trust in you because of your position. With this trust comes power and responsibility, as well as an ethical and legal obligation to “do no harm.” It is important that you are aware of current professional, legal, and ethical standards for advanced practice nurses with prescriptive authority. In this paper, you explore ethical and legal implications of the following scenario and consider how to appropriately respond. Scenario: You see another nurse practitioner writing a prescription for her husband who is not a patient of the nurse practitioner. The prescription is for a narcotic. You can’t decide whether or not to report the incident. To prepare: · Review the following: · Arcangelo, V. P., Peterson, A. M., Wilbur, V., & Reinhold, J. A. (Eds.). (2017). Pharmacotherapeutics for advanced practice: A practical approach (4th ed.). Ambler, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Chapter 1, “Issues for the Practitioner in Drug Therapy” (pp. 3–14) This chapter introduces issues relating to drug therapy such as adverse drug events and medication adherence. It also explores drug safety, the practitioner’s role and responsibilities in prescribing, and prescription writing. Chapter 59, “The Economics of Pharmacotherapeutics” (pp. 1009-1018) This chapter analyzes the costs of drug therapy to health care systems and society and explores practice guideline compliance and current issues in medical care. Chapter 60, “Integrative Approaches to Pharmacotherapy—A Look at Complex Cases” (pp. 1021-1036) This chapter examines issues in individual patient cases. It explores concepts relating to evaluation, drug selection, patient education, and alternative treatment options. As well as: Drug Enforcement Administration. (n.d.). Code of federal regulations. Retrieved August 23, 2012, from http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/21cfr/cfr/1300/1300_01.htm Anderson, P., & Townsend, T. (2010). Medication errors: Don’t let them happen to you. American Nurse Today, 5(3), 23–28. Retrieved from https://americannursetoday.com/medication-errors-dont-let-them-happen-to-you/ · Consider the ethical and legal implications of the scenario for all stakeholders involved such as the prescriber, pharmacist, patient, and the patient’s family. · Think about two strategies that you, as an advanced practice nurse, would use to guide your ethically and legally responsible decision-making in this scenario. With these thoughts in mind: Post an explanation of the ethical and legal implications of the scenario you selected on all stakeholders involved such as the prescriber, pharmacist, patient, and the patient’s family. Describe two strategies that you, as an advanced practice nurse, would use to guide your decision making in this scenario.
Turn the brief into deliverables
- 01Ethical and legal implications for the prescriber.
- 02Ethical and legal implications for the pharmacist.
- 03Ethical and legal implications for the patient.
- 04Ethical and legal implications for the patient's family.
- 05A jurisdiction cited for the legal analysis.
- 06A prevention strategy built from systems mechanisms.
Each party in turn, then the prevention strategy
The prescriber
Set out accountability, scope, disclosure duty and the principles engaged.
What the assessor is likely looking for
Scope of practice tied to a state grant of authority.
The pharmacist
Describe the independent review duty and where the second check failed.
What the assessor is likely looking for
A duty belonging to the pharmacist rather than delegated by the prescriber.
The patient
Cover consent, autonomy and the right to know about the error.
What the assessor is likely looking for
Disclosure treated as owed regardless of harm.
The family
Address surrogate decision-making and the limits of disclosure to them.
What the assessor is likely looking for
A limit on family disclosure where the patient has capacity.
Preventing it next time
Give double-checks, decision support, reconciliation and non-punitive reporting.
What the assessor is likely looking for
A mechanism that works without depending on individual vigilance.
Where prescriptive authority and error evidence sit
Recommended databases
- AHRQ PSNet
- NCBI Bookshelf
- State board of nursing
- Walden Library
Search sequence
- 1.Read a medication error primer before writing the prevention section.
- 2.Check your state's prescriptive authority rules and any collaborative requirement.
- 3.Look up the evidence on disclosure of errors that caused no harm.
- 4.Find what the pharmacist's professional review duty consists of.
Reference shortlist
These are authoritative starting points, not a ready-made bibliography. A qualified reviewer must confirm that each source fits the assignment and supports the claim beside which it is cited.
Medication Errors and Adverse Drug Events
AHRQ Patient Safety Network · 2024
Medication errors and adverse drug events, for mechanisms and prevention.
Medical Error Prevention and Root Cause Analysis
StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf · 2023
Error prevention and root cause analysis, for the systems framing.
APRN
National Council of State Boards of Nursing · 2024
Prescriptive authority and its regulatory basis.
Medical Ethics
StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf · 2026
Medical ethics, for the principles engaged by disclosure and non-maleficence.
Culture of Safety
AHRQ Patient Safety Network · 2024
Safety culture, for non-punitive reporting as a prevention mechanism.
Before you submit this paper
Common mistakes
- Omitting the pharmacist, who has an independent duty to review.
- Merging legal and ethical implications into one discussion.
- Treating prescriptive authority as uniform across states.
- Proposing greater care as the prevention strategy.
- Assuming an error causing no harm need not be disclosed.
Submission checklist
- Are all four parties addressed separately?
- Does the pharmacist section describe an independent duty?
- Are legal and ethical implications kept apart for each party?
- Is your own state's prescribing rule cited?
- Is the prevention strategy made of mechanisms rather than intentions?
Use this guide to plan and review your own work. Follow your institution's rules and read Brinevia's academic-integrity policy.
Written by
Maren Caldwell
MSN, RN, CNE
Medical-surgical nursing, pharmacology and NCLEX preparation
Maren is a registered nurse with over 15 years of clinical and educational experience in medical-surgical nursing. She writes on NCLEX preparation, patient care fundamentals, pharmacology and evidence-based practice.
Reviewed by
Dr. Tessa Redmond
DNP, RN, CNE
Evidence-based practice and clinical education
Tessa is a doctorally-prepared nurse educator. She reviews Brinevia content for clinical accuracy and alignment with current evidence-based guidelines.