RT Journal
A1 Taubenhaus LJ
T1 REsponsibility for emergency room care
JF JAMA
JO JAMA
YR 1969
FD January 13
VO 207
IS 2
SP 370
OP 370
DO 10.1001/jama.1969.03150150082036
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.1969.03150150082036
AB To the Editor:— 
    I was somewhat disturbed by the answer to the question on responsibility for emergency room care (205:807, 1968). A hospital and its medical staff have a major legal and moral responsibility to everybody that the hospital accepts for treatment, and the nurse on the emergency floor is acting as the agent of the physician on duty whether or not the physician sees the patient.In view of the recent court decisions which, in effect, state that average community care is not sufficient and that a hospital is required to provide the highest standards of care, I think that the physician and the hospital would be liable for any errors in judgement made by the nurse.I firmly believe that it is exceedingly bad policy to leave to the nurse the determination as to whether or not an individual patient should be seen by the physician. Whether