NLE Nursing Ethics, Jurisprudence & Professional Adjustment Reviewer 2026

Answer: B. RA 9173

Step 1 – Identify the question: It asks for the current governing law of Philippine nursing. Step 2 – Recall the law: RA 9173, the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002, is the current governing statute. Step 3 – Eliminate wrong options: RA 7164 is the older Philippine Nursing Act of 1991, which RA 9173 repealed. RA 10173 is the Data Privacy Act of 2012, a separate law protecting personal information. RA 8344 (as amended by RA 10932) is the Anti-Hospital Deposit Law protecting emergency patients. Step 4 – Confirm the answer: Only RA 9173 is the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002. Key point: RA 9173 repealed RA 7164 and remains the primary legal foundation of nursing practice.

Answer: C. Board of Nursing (BON)

Step 1 – Understand the roles: Both the PRC and BON are involved in nursing regulation, so distinguish between them carefully. Step 2 – Role of the PRC: The PRC is the overarching regulatory agency that provides administrative support, issues PRC ID cards, and enforces regulatory laws across all professions. It does not itself conduct exams. Step 3 – Role of the BON: Under RA 9173, the Board of Nursing (BON) is the specific professional regulatory board that conducts the NLE, determines eligibility, and has the power to issue, suspend, or revoke nursing licenses. Step 4 – Eliminate wrong options: The DOH handles public health programs, not licensure. The PNA is the accredited professional organization for nurses, not a regulatory body. Step 5 – Key distinction: The BON acts, the PRC supports and administers the broader system. The BON holds the specific power over the nursing license.

Answer: B. General average of 75%, no subject below 60%

Step 1 – Recall the passing standard: RA 9173 sets two conditions that must both be met to pass the NLE. Step 2 – General average: The candidate must obtain a general weighted average of at least 75%. Step 3 – Subject minimum: No subject rating can fall below 60%. If a candidate averages 75% but scores 55% in one subject, they fail. Step 4 – Why the other options are wrong: An 80% average is too high; 50% as a subject floor is too low; a 70% general average is also too low. Step 5 – Key point: Both conditions are simultaneous requirements — achieving one alone is not enough. This dual requirement ensures both overall competence and minimum subject proficiency.

Answer: B. The nursing process (assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, evaluation)

Step 1 – Locate the legal basis: RA 9173, Section 28, defines the scope of nursing practice. Step 2 – Central framework identified: The law explicitly states that nursing care is delivered through the utilization of the nursing process — consisting of assessment, nursing diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation (ADPIE). Step 3 – Eliminate wrong options: The medical model is the physician's approach, not the nurse's defined scope. Following only physician orders or hospital guidelines does not capture the full autonomous professional role of the nurse. Step 4 – Key clinical link: The nursing process is what distinguishes professional nursing practice from task-based work. It is an autonomous, systematic, and patient-centered approach. Step 5 – Remember: Even when implementing physician orders, the nurse applies the nursing process and exercises sound professional judgment — the nurse is never just an order-follower.

Answer: C. Nurse's intention to cause harm

Step 1 – Recall the four elements of negligence: Duty, Breach, Causation, and Damages (DBCD). Step 2 – What negligence is NOT: Negligence is an unintentional tort — it does not require proof of intent to harm. If harm is intentional, the action becomes a different kind of legal wrong (e.g., battery or criminal act). Step 3 – Why the other options are correct elements: Duty establishes the nurse-patient relationship. Breach shows the standard of care was not met. Damages confirm the patient actually suffered harm. Step 4 – Key concept: A nurse can be negligent through carelessness, inattention, or failure to act — none of which require any intent to harm. Step 5 – Memory tip: Negligence = unintentional failure. Intent is relevant only for intentional torts like battery or assault.

Answer: C. Res ipsa loquitur

Step 1 – Analyze the scenario: A foreign object (surgical sponge) was unintentionally left inside a patient's body — this is a classic surgical error. Step 2 – Apply the doctrine: Res ipsa loquitur means 'the thing speaks for itself.' It applies when the negligence is so obvious that it can be inferred without detailed expert testimony — a sponge inside a body would not happen without someone's negligence. Step 3 – Eliminate wrong options: Respondeat superior is about employer liability for employee actions — correct doctrine but not the best fit for this inference-of-negligence scenario. Force majeure applies to unavoidable natural events, not surgical errors. Last clear chance applies when someone had a final opportunity to prevent harm and failed. Step 4 – Key point: Res ipsa loquitur shifts the burden — the healthcare team must explain why the error occurred. Step 5 – Classic examples: retained sponge, operation on the wrong limb, burns during surgery.

Answer: B. Board of Nursing (BON) / PRC

Step 1 – Identify the type of liability: Administrative liability concerns the nurse's professional license and fitness to practice — it is separate from civil or criminal liability. Step 2 – Which body handles it: The Board of Nursing (BON), under the PRC, has the authority to investigate and impose administrative penalties such as suspension or revocation of the nursing license for grounds like impaired practice. Step 3 – Eliminate wrong options: The Regional Trial Court handles civil and criminal cases, not professional administrative matters. The National Privacy Commission handles data privacy violations. The Office of the Ombudsman handles cases against government officials. Step 4 – Key reminder: One negligent act can trigger all three types of liability — administrative (BON/PRC), civil (court for damages), and criminal (prosecution) — simultaneously. Step 5 – Ground cited in RA 9173: Practicing while impaired is a valid ground for suspension or revocation of the certificate of registration.

Answer: B. If it was not documented, it was not done

Step 1 – Identify the issue: The nurse performed a nursing action (medication administration) but failed to document it. Step 2 – Apply the principle: The legal maxim 'If it was not documented, it was not done' means that in the eyes of the law and clinical review, undocumented care is treated as if the care was never provided. Step 3 – Why this matters: The clinical record is a legal document. It is the primary evidence of what occurred. A nurse who cannot produce documentation cannot prove that care was given. Step 4 – Eliminate wrong options: Respondeat superior deals with employer liability, not documentation. Force majeure excuses unforeseeable events — a forgotten entry is not an act of nature. Res ipsa loquitur applies when negligence is inferred from the injury itself. Step 5 – Practical takeaway: Complete, accurate, timely, and legible documentation is the nurse's strongest legal defense. Never alter, backdate, or falsify entries.

Answer: C. Sensitive personal information

Step 1 – Identify the law: RA 10173, the Data Privacy Act of 2012, classifies personal information into categories based on sensitivity. Step 2 – Classification of health data: Health information is expressly classified as sensitive personal information under RA 10173. This means it receives a higher level of legal protection than ordinary personal data. Step 3 – Consequences of this classification: Processing sensitive personal information (including sharing, accessing, or storing health data) requires a lawful basis such as explicit consent or the necessity of medical care. Unauthorized access or disclosure carries administrative fines and criminal penalties. Step 4 – Eliminating wrong options: General personal information has fewer protections. Privileged communication is a legal concept (e.g., attorney-client), not an RA 10173 category. Public domain information is freely available — patient health records are the opposite. Step 5 – Practical link: This law gives a legal backbone to the nurse's ethical duty of confidentiality. Share patient information only on a need-to-know basis.

Answer: C. RA 8344 as amended by RA 10932 – Anti-Hospital Deposit Law

Step 1 – Identify the patient right at issue: The right to emergency care regardless of ability to pay — this is a protective patient right in the Philippine healthcare context. Step 2 – Match to the correct law: RA 8344 (as amended by RA 10932, also called the Anti-Hospital Deposit Law) specifically prohibits hospitals and health facilities from demanding any deposit or advance payment before administering emergency treatment or care for serious cases. Step 3 – Eliminate wrong options: RA 9173 governs nursing practice and licensure — not hospital billing. RA 10173 governs data privacy. RA 7164 is the repealed 1991 nursing law. Step 4 – Why this matters for nurses: Nurses are on the front lines of emergency care. Knowing this law means nurses can advocate for patients being turned away or delayed due to inability to pay — this is an act of patient advocacy and professional responsibility. Step 5 – Key phrase: The Anti-Hospital Deposit Law ensures that no Filipino patient in an emergency is denied care due to financial reasons.

Answer: B. Ensure the refusal is informed, document it, and notify the physician.

Step 1 – Understand autonomy: Autonomy is the patient's right to make informed decisions about their own care without coercion. A competent adult may refuse any treatment. Step 2 – Evaluate the options: Proceeding with the transfusion against the patient's will violates autonomy and constitutes battery. Calling the family to pressure the patient introduces coercion, which also violates autonomy. Secretly giving a smaller volume is deceptive and violates both autonomy and veracity. Step 3 – Identify the correct action: The nurse must first confirm the refusal is truly informed (patient understands consequences), document the refusal accurately, and notify the physician so the plan of care can be adjusted. Step 4 – Key NLE point: Respecting a competent adult's informed refusal is a core nursing obligation. The nurse is an advocate, not an enforcer of treatment.

Answer: B. Repositioning a bedridden patient every 2 hours to prevent pressure injuries.

Step 1 – Define beneficence: Beneficence means doing good and actively promoting the patient's welfare, not just avoiding harm. Step 2 – Analyze each option: Refusing a valid medication without grounds is not beneficent — it withholds treatment. Sharing diagnosis with coworkers violates confidentiality. Charging the same fee regardless of service is more related to justice but is incorrectly applied here. Step 3 – Identify the correct action: Repositioning every 2 hours is a proactive nursing intervention that prevents harm (pressure injuries) and promotes skin integrity — this is a direct act of doing good (beneficence). Step 4 – Remember: Beneficence includes preventive, promotive, and restorative actions for the patient's benefit.