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@article{204449,
        author = {Maj Salma V S and Lt Col Rituparna Guha},
        title = {A glance into legal literacy in nursing practice: - Assessing medico-legal knowledge and awareness among nursing officers.},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {1},
        pages = {2877-2883},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=204449},
        abstract = {Back ground: Nursing officers are responsible not only for delivering patient care but also for maintaining accurate documentation, obtaining valid consent and safeguarding patient rights. With increasing legal awareness among the public, medico-legal competence has become an essential component of nursing practice. In Armed Forces hospitals, nursing officers frequently encounter trauma and other medico-legal cases that require proper documentation and reporting. However, limited information is available regarding the medico-legal preparedness of nursing officers in such settings.
Objectives: To assess the level of knowledge and awareness regarding medico-legal aspects among nursing officers and to determine their association with selected demographic variables.
Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in a tertiary care Armed Forces hospital in Western Maharashtra. The study population comprised registered nursing officer’s working in the selected hospital. A total of 116 nursing officers(n=116) participated in the study and were selected using convenience sampling. Data were collected using a self-administered semi-structured questionnaire consisting of knowledge and awareness components. A pilot study was conducted among 12 subjects to assess the feasibility and clarity of the tool. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Ethics Committee of AFMC and informed consent was taken from all participants. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Fisher’s Exact test and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, with p < 0.05 considered statistically significant.
Key Results: Among the participants, 67.24% demonstrated good knowledge while 32.76% had poor knowledge regarding medico-legal aspects. More than 88% of participants showed good awareness. No statistically significant association was found between knowledge or awareness and demographic variables. A positive but statistically non-significant correlation was observed between knowledge and awareness (p = 0.078).
Conclusion: Nursing officers demonstrated satisfactory awareness but gaps were identified in detailed medico-legal knowledge. The present study showed that nursing officers had comparatively higher awareness but lower detailed knowledge regarding medico-legal aspects. Awareness refers to general understanding of professional responsibilities, whereas knowledge involves specific legal rules, procedures and documentation requirements. Periodic in-service education, structured training programmes and reinforcement of documentation practices are necessary to strengthen legally safe nursing practice in Armed Forces hospitals.},
        keywords = {Medico-legal aspects; Nursing officers; Legal knowledge; Awareness; Documentation; Patient rights; Informed consent; Armed Forces hospital; Nursing practice.},
        month = {June},
        }