CMT Legal and Ethical Guidelines 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under most state laws, a CMT may administer medications under the supervision of which professional?
- A physician assistant
- A licensed nurse (RN or LPN) (Correct answer)
- A certified nursing assistant (CNA)
- A pharmacist
Correct answer: A licensed nurse (RN or LPN)
CMTs work under the delegation and supervision of a licensed nurse (RN or LPN), who remains responsible for the overall medication administration process.
Question 2: What is the legal term for intentionally touching a resident without their consent during medication administration?
- Negligence
- Battery (Correct answer)
- Fraud
- Malpractice
Correct answer: Battery
Battery is intentional, non-consensual physical contact, which can occur if a CMT administers medication to a resident who has clearly refused.
Question 3: A CMT makes a medication error and is unsure if it caused harm. The FIRST action should be:
- Wait to see if any symptoms develop before reporting
- Immediately notify the supervising nurse (Correct answer)
- Document the error and do nothing else
- Call the pharmacy to discuss the error privately
Correct answer: Immediately notify the supervising nurse
The CMT must immediately notify the supervising nurse so that the resident can be assessed and appropriate action taken without delay.
Question 4: Which document protects a healthcare worker who reports suspected elder abuse in good faith?
- HIPAA Privacy Rule
- Mandatory reporter immunity statutes (Correct answer)
- OBRA complaint protections
- Joint Commission standards
Correct answer: Mandatory reporter immunity statutes
Most states have mandatory reporter immunity laws that protect individuals who report suspected elder abuse in good faith from civil or criminal liability.
Question 5: A resident with dementia is unable to communicate but grimaces when given medication. Ethically, the CMT should:
- Continue administering since the order is valid
- Stop and notify the nurse to assess for pain or refusal (Correct answer)
- Ask family members if it is okay to continue
- Crush the medication to make it easier to administer
Correct answer: Stop and notify the nurse to assess for pain or refusal
Non-verbal signs such as grimacing may indicate discomfort or refusal and must be reported to the nurse for clinical assessment before continuing.
Question 6: Which of the following best describes 'scope of practice' for a CMT?
- Any task the employer assigns regardless of training
- The specific duties legally authorized by state law and certification (Correct answer)
- Tasks a supervising nurse verbally approves at the time
- All nursing tasks performed under direct observation
Correct answer: The specific duties legally authorized by state law and certification
Scope of practice defines the specific duties a CMT is legally permitted to perform based on state statutes, regulations, and their certification.
Question 7: If a CMT is asked to perform a task that exceeds their scope of practice, they should:
- Perform it if they feel confident enough
- Refuse and report the request to their supervisor (Correct answer)
- Perform it only if a nurse is nearby
- Ask a co-worker to observe and then proceed
Correct answer: Refuse and report the request to their supervisor
A CMT must refuse any task outside their legal scope of practice and report the request to their supervisor to avoid liability and protect the resident.
CMT Legal and Ethical Guidelines 3
Under most state laws, a CMT may administer medications under the supervision of which professional?