Health Care and the Law [Fifth Edition]

"Fully updated to reflect the rapid pace of change in the health law areas. Explains the legal process as it relates to the health care professional."--Libraries Australia. Table of Contents Part I. Introductory concepts -- 1. What is law -- 2. The legal structure -- 3. The legal process -- Part II. Patient relationships -- 4. Consent to health care by a competent adult -- 5. Consent to health care by a legally incompetent person -- 6. Negligence -- 7. Patient information and privacy -- 8. Patients' property -- 9. Contract -- Part III. Employment -- 10. Contracts to provide health care services -- 011. Accidents and injuries related to health care --12. Registration and practice --13. Drugs --14. Criminal law and health care --15. State involvement in birth and death: registration and coronial inquiries --16. State involvement in threats to health or welfare --17. Human tissue transplants and reproductive technology --18. Expanding recognition of human rights --19. Decision making, law and ethics: a discussion.

The Church of England : Charity Law and Human Rights

This book examines the interface between religion, charity law and human rights. It does so by treating the Church of England and its current circumstances as a timely case study providing an opportunity to examine the tensions that have now become such a characteristic feature of that interface. Firstly, it suggests that the Church is the primary source of canon law principles that have played a formative role in shaping civic morality throughout the common law jurisdictions: the history of their emergence and enforcement by the State in post-Reformation England is recorded and assessed. Secondly, it reveals that of such principles those of greatest weight were associated with matters of sexuality: in particular, for centuries, family law was formulated and applied with regard for the sanctity of the heterosexual marital family which provided the only legally permissible context for any form of sexual relationship. Thirdly, given that history, it identifies and assesses the particular implications that now arise for the Church as a consequence of recent charity law reform outcomes and human rights case law developments: a comparative analysis of religion related case law is provided. Finally, following an outline of the structure and organizational functions of the Church, a detailed analysis is undertaken of its success in engaging with these issues in the context of the Lambeth Conferences, the wider Anglican Communion and in the ill-fated Covenant initiative. From the perspective of the dilemmas currently challenging the moral authority of the Church of England, this book identifies and explores the contemporary ‘moral imperatives’ or red line issues that now threaten the coherence of Christian religions in most leading common law nations. Gay marriage and abortion are among the host of morally charged and deeply divisive topics demanding a reasoned response and leadership from religious bodies. Attention is given to the judicial interpretation and evaluation of these and other issues that now undermine the traditional role of the Church of England. As the interface between religion, charity law and human rights becomes steadily more fractious, with religious fundamentalism and discrimination acquiring a higher profile, there is now a pressing need for a more balanced relationship between those with and those without religious beliefs. This book will be an invaluable aid in starting the process of achieving a triangulated relationship between the principles of canon law, charity law and human rights law.

The Responsibility to Protect and International Law

The Responsibility to Protect (R2P) is a major new international principle, adopted unanimously in 2005 by Heads of State and Government. Whilst it is broadly acknowledged that the principle has an important and intimate relationship with international law, especially the law relating to sovereignty, peace and security, human rights and armed conflict, there has yet to be a volume dedicated to this question. The Responsibility to Protect and International Law fills that gap by bringing together leading scholars from North America, Europe and Australia to examine R2P’s legal content. The Responsibility to Protect and International Law focuses on questions relating to R2P’s legal quality, its relationship with sovereignty, and the question of whether the norm establishes legal obligations. It also aims to introduce readers to different legal perspectives, including feminism, and pressing practical questions such as how the law might be used to prevent genocide and mass atrocities, and punish the perpetrators.

'Devils and dust' : extending the 'uncivil politics of law and order' to the 'war on terror'

The ‘war on terror’ and ongoing terrorist attacks around the world have generated a growing body of literature on national and international measures to counteract terrorist activity. This detailed study investigates an aspect of contemporary counter-terrorism that has been largely overlooked; the impact of these measures on the continued viability of the democratic state.

Using pulse transit delay in Z-scan to discriminate between excited-state absorption and other nonlinear processes in ZnO nanocones

We report a new approach that uses the single beam Z-scan technique, to discriminate between excited state absorption (ESA) and two and three photon nonlinear absorption. By measuring the apparent delay or advance of the pulse in reaching the detector, the nonlinear absorption can be unambiguously identified as either instantaneous or transient. The simple method does not require a large range of input fluences or sophisticated pulse-probe experimental apparatus. The technique is easily extended to any absorption process dependent on pulse width and to nonlinear refraction measurements. We demonstrate in particular, that the large nonlinear absorption in ZnO nanocones when exposed to nanosecond 532 nm pulses, is due mostly to ESA, not pure two-photon absorption.

Freedom to choose? Embryo selection, reproductive decision-making and the role of the state

Involving the biopsy of an eight-cell embryo, PGD has been hailed as a means of making reproductive decisions without having to face the heart-wrenching decision to abort an affected foetus. However, controversy around the kinds of traits for which testing can be done, and who has access to the technology, has led to questions about the way in which the technology is developing. Women who are allowed to access in vitro fertilisation (IVF) services can currently also access PGD in limited circumstances.

Assessing capacity in the context of testamentary, enduring power of attorney, and advance care directive documents in Australia

Balancing the competing interests of autonomy and protection of individuals is an escalating challenge confronting an ageing Australian population. Legal and medical professionals are increasingly being asked to determine whether individuals are legally capable to make their own testamentary, financial and/or personal/health care decisions. Diseases such as dementia impact upon cognition which necessitates collaboration between the legal and medical professions to satisfactorily assess the effect of such mentally disabling conditions upon legal competency. Terminological and methodological differences exist between the two professions when assessing capacity in this context which subsequently create miscommunication and misunderstanding. Consequently, it is not necessarily a simple solution for a legal professional to seek the opinion of a medical practitioner. Exacerbating the situation is the fact that no consistent and transparent capacity assessment paradigm currently exists in Australia. Assessments are instead being undertaken on an ad hoc basis dependent upon the skill set of the legal and/or medical professionals involved. A qualitative study seeking the views of legal and medical professionals who practise in this area has been conducted. This incorporated a review of the relevant literature and surveys which informed the semi-structured interviews conducted with 10 legal and 20 medical practitioners. Practitioners were asked whether there is a standard approach to assessment and whether national guidelines would assist. The general consensus was that uniform guidelines would be advantageous. The research also canvassed practitioner views as to the state of the relationship between the professions when assessing capacity. Three promising practices have emerged from this research: first, is the need for the development of national guidelines and supporting principles to satisfactorily assess capacity; second, is the possibility of strengthening the relationship between legal and medical professionals to assist in the satisfactory assessment of legal capacity; and third, the need for increased community education.

Nowhere to hide: informal disease surveillance networks tracing state behaviour

Since the revisions to the International Health Regulations (IHR) in 2005, much attention has turned to how states, particularly developing states, will address core capacity requirements attached to the revised IHR. Primarily, how will states strengthen their capacity to identify and verify public health emergencies of international concern (PHEIC)? Another important but under-examined aspect of the revised IHR is the empowerment of the World Health Organization (WHO) to act upon non-governmental reports of disease outbreaks. The revised IHR potentially marks a new chapter in the powers of ‘disease intelligence’ and how the WHO may press states to verify an outbreak event. This article seeks to understand whether internet surveillance response programs (ISRPs) are effective in ‘naming and shaming’ states into reporting disease outbreaks.

Australian Environmental Law : Norms, Principles & Rules, 3rd Edition

Australian Environmental Law: Norms, Principles and Rules, 3rd Edition provides a detailed examination of the fundamental concepts and principles of the environmental legal system in Australia. This new edition updates relevant State, Territory and Commonwealth legislation and case law and expands on the themes set out in the 2nd edition, namely:the origins and contexts of environmental governance; the movement toward ecologically sustainable development; the relevance and function of ecologically sustainable development today in the legal system; and the range of instrumental rules supporting environmental governance. The 3rd edition in particular expands upon the range of instrumental rules by analysing through the case law the emerging sets of rules of competence and limitation on the one hand and the emerging sets of purposive, deliberative, methodological, strategic, liability and market rules on the other hand. This thematic and principled approach adopted in Australian Environmental Law: Norms, Principles and Rules, 3rd Edition presents the reader with coverage of the important issues surrounding this area of the law in a clear and concise way.

Representing clients from courtroom to mediation settings : switching hats between adversarial advocacy and dispute resolution advocacy

In the vast majority of cases legal representation in mediation can provide many advantages for clients. However, in some, progress can be thwarted when lawyers do not understand the goals of the mediation process and their dispute resolution advocacy role. This article will explore some of the similarities and differences between the knowledge and skills that lawyers can draw upon when representing clients in adversarial court hearings as compared with non-adversarial settings, such as in mediations. One key distinction is the different approaches that legal representatives can use to effectively act in the best interests of clients. This article will highlight how an appreciation of such distinctions can assist lawyers to “switch” hats between their adversarial and non-adversarial roles. In particular, an understanding that the duty to promote the best interests of clients in mediation is consistent with a collaborative and problem-solving approach can greatly assist in the resolution process.

Doctors' knowledge of the law on withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining medical treatment

Objectives To examine the level of knowledge of doctors about the law on withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from adults who lack decision-making capacity, and factors associated with a higher level of knowledge. Design, setting and participants Postal survey of all specialists in emergency medicine, geriatric medicine, intensive care, medical oncology, palliative medicine, renal medicine and respiratory medicine on the AMPCo Direct database in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. Survey initially posted to participants on 18 July 2012 and closed on 31 January 2013. Main outcome measures Medical specialists’ levels of knowledge about the law, based on their responses to two survey questions. Results Overall response rate was 32%. For the seven statements contained in the two questions about the law, the mean knowledge score was 3.26 out of 7. State and specialty were the strongest predictors of legal knowledge. Conclusions Among doctors who practise in the end-of-life field, there are some significant knowledge gaps about the law on withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatment from adults who lack decision-making capacity. Significant consequences for both patients and doctors can flow from a failure to comply with the law. Steps should be taken to improve doctors’ legal knowledge in this area and to harmonise the law across Australia.

Haemoglobin adducts of acrylonitrile and ethylene oxide in acrylonitrile workers, dependent on polymorphisms of the glutathione transferases GSTT1 and GSTM1

Fifty-nine persons with industrial handling of low levels of acrylonitrile (AN) were studied. As part of a medical surveillance programme an extended haemoglobin adduct monitoring [N-(cyanoethyl)valine, CEV; N- (methyl)valine, MV; N-(hydroxyethyl)valine, HEV] was performed. Moreover, the genetic states of the polymorphic glutathione transferases GSTM1 and GSTT1 were assayed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Repetitive analyses of CEV and MV in subsequent years resulted in comparable values (means, 59.8 and 70.3 μg CEV/1 blood; 6.7 and 6.7 μg MV/1 blood). Hence, the industrial AN exposures were well below current official standards. Monitoring the haemoglobin adduct CEV appears as a suitable means of biomonitoring and medical surveillance under such exposure conditions. There was also no apparent correlation between the CEV and HEV or CEV and MV adduct levels. The MV and HEV values observed represented background levels, which apparently are not related to any occupational chemical exposure. There was no consistent effect of the genetic GSTM1 or GSTT1 state on CEV adduct levels induced by acrylonitrile exposure. Therefore, neither GSTM1 nor GSTT1 appears as a major AN metabolizing isoenzyme in humans. The low and physiological background levels of MV were also not influenced by the genetic GSTM1 state, but the MV adduct levels tended to be higher in GSTT1- individuals compared to GSTT1 + persons. With respect to the background levels of HEV adducts observed, there was no major influence of the GSTM1 state, but GST- individuals displayed adduct levels that were about 1/3 higher than those of GSTT1+ individuals. The coincidence with known differences in rates of background sister chromatid exchange between GSTT1- and GSTT1 + persons suggests that the lower ethylene oxide (EO) detoxification rate in GSTT1- persons, indicated by elevated blood protein hydroxyethyl adduct levels, leads to an increased genotoxic effect of the physiological EO background.

Work Health and Safety Law and Policy

The third edition of Work Health and Safety Law and Policy continues to provide a plain English approach to explaining and analysing the law which regulates work health and safety in Australia. Providing broad coverage, this book focuses on the role that legal regulation plays in preventing work-related injury and disease, as well as the way in which the law contributes to rehabilitating and compensating injured and ill workers. This third edition focuses on the national model Work Health and Safety Bill 2009. The provisions of the model Bill are outlined, along with court decisions and other documentation that help interpret the provisions in new legislation enacting the model Bill. There is also a chapter in the book examining the national model Work Health and Safety Regulations 2011, and model codes of practice. The book includes three chapters on common law, statutory workers’ compensation provisions and rehabilitation. Tables summarising the key legal provisions of the major Australian Commonwealth, State and Territory workers’ compensation statutes have been updated and give quick and easy reference to points of legislation.