Good Samaritan Acts

James is an FY1 doctor, 3 months into his job. He has just finished a 12-hour on-call night shift when he decides to go to his local supermarket to pick up some groceries on his way home. Whilst there, he hears someone shout for help. He rushes over to find a body lying on the floor. It appears that the person has fainted and hit their head on the floor, causing a significant head wound. James introduces himself as a doctor and applies pressure to the site of bleeding to stem blood flow, having checked that the patient was breathing. He asks for an ambulance to be called. James continues to monitor the patient’s breathing whilst applying pressure to the head wound. After a short while, an ambulance arrives and the paramedics take over. The supermarket manager takes down James’ details and asks for a description of what happened. The next day, James arrives at work and recounts the story to a colleague. His colleague expressed his concern at James’ actions, saying that he could get sued. Several days later, two letters arrive for James in the post. He becomes slightly anxious after hearing what his colleague had said about legal action. He opens the letters; one is from the supermarket manager and the other is from the patient. They both expressed their gratitude for his actions.

• What is a Good Samaritan act?
• Is there a legal duty to perform a Good Samaritan act?
• What standard of care would the doctor be held to in a court of law?
• Is there an ethical and professional duty to act as a Good Samaritan?

Apply Theory (Specific Professional Healthcare Competencies + Clinical Medical Ethical Principles) to Practice in order to provide Optimal Patient-Centered Care (OPCC)