Assessment of perceived knowledge and attitude of nurses on legal implications of negligence in delivering care in University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, Nigeria

Background: Medical malpractice is rising, requiring legal action to protect patients. Laws should hold physicians, nurses inclusive, accountable and impose punitive measures on practitioners whose negligence harms patients. Aim: This study evaluated nurses' knowledge and attitudes regarding the legal consequences of negligence in patient care as well as the factors responsible at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital. Methods: The study used a descriptive design with convenient sampling to select 147 participants. Data was collected via questionnaires and analysed using SPSS v26. Results: Results showed 82% of UATH nurses were aware of negligence's legal implications. Most demonstrated high level of knowledge (mean score 3.86) and positive attitudes (mean score 3.03) towards legal implication of negligence in delivering their care. Key factors contributing to negligence include poor nurse-patient communication, failure to consult higher authorities, heavy workloads, and nurse shortages among other factors. Recommendation: It was then recommended that nurses and nursing students should undergo some special training and retraining on laws guiding the profession, hospitals should educate patients /clients on their rights and limitations as well as nurse’s rights and encourage best practices in their establishments.