Home Legal Advisor: Mandated Reporting Case Study

Case Study

While taking call in the emergency department, you treat the following patients:

1. An 87 year-old male arrives via ambulance from a local nursing home with bruising on his neck and wrists. Although you are not completely sure, you suspect abuse based on the bruising patterns and similar past injuries document in the patient’s medical record.

2. A 26 year-old female presents with injuries consistent with forced sexual assault. The patient informs you that she has been raped, but does not want to report the rape or press charges on the assailant.

3. A 17 year-old male presents with a small-caliber gunshot wound to the foot. He states that he was just "messing around" with a couple of friends, and the shooting was an accident.

In which of these cases would you report the injuries, and the surrounding circumstances, to the proper authorities?

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