兒科護理人員業務過失有責性之個案研究

Liability of Pediatric Nurses for Professional Negligence in Taiwan: A Case Study

背景：兒科護理人員業務過失責任判斷之議題缺乏研究探討。目的：（1）瞭解刑法上犯罪行為成立的審查條件；（2）呈現案例中兒科護理人員起訴事實的認定及爭議；（3）瞭解刑法上無責任即無處罰之原則；及（4）探討案例中護理人員未被科以刑罰之原因。方法：採文獻探討與個案研究法，解析臺灣高等法院高雄分院100年度重醫上更（一）字第1號刑事判決案例。結果：（1）犯罪行為成立的審查條件即所謂的構成要件、違法性、有責性；（2）本案護理人員被控其護理照護行為與嬰兒之溢奶窒息死亡間有因果關係，因業務過失致死被起訴，護理人員提出辯護、並說明已踐行護理照護之必要程序；（3）本案終因責任不可歸責於護理人員，而無罪定讞；及（4）高等法院及最高法院基於「無罪推定」原則，判本案護理人員無罪。結論：結果可協助兒科護理人員明瞭自身的角色與法律責任，及認識在法律訴訟案件中有責任始受處罰之原則。

Background: Liability attribution and professional negligence in pediatric nursing are topics that have been neglected in Taiwan.Purpose: (1) Identify the definitions of related criminal activities in accordance with domestic criminal law; (2) Elucidate the facts and the dispute in a current case involving a pediatric nurse; (3) Elucidate the principle of 'no punishment without law'; (4) Explore the reasons why the pediatric nurse in the current case received a verdict of 'not guilty'.Methods: A literature review and case study approach were used to analyze a sentence reconsideration of the first instance No. 1 (2011) issued by the Taiwan high court, Kaohsiung branch court.Results: The conditions for the scrutiny of criminal activity under Taiwan criminal law are statement of facts, illegality (justifiable cause), and liability (excuse). In this case, the pediatric nurse was accused of failing to prevent an infant from suffocation and of not discharging her obligations as a nurse. The pediatric nurse rebutted the charge of criminal negligence. The intervening behaviors of the pediatric nurse were found to be legal and not culpable. In this case, the High Court and Supreme Court made a final criminal judgment based on the presumption of innocence, and the pediatric nurse was pronounced innocent of the charge.Conclusion: This article intends to assist pediatric nurses understand their liabilities under Taiwan's criminal law. Pediatric nurses should gain a better understanding of the nature of liability for professional negligence in order to clarify how actions that may be illegal do not necessarily make nurses culpable.