Forensic Medicine Practice

20 learning units • 10 questions per unit • 200 explained questions

Module 01 — Medical Law, Ethics & Consent

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Question 01 • Single best answer

An injured patient needs immediate resuscitation while a legal form remains incomplete. What should the doctor prioritize?

A. Completing every form before care B. Waiting for a witness before any treatment C. Obtaining a full forensic history before stabilizing the patient D. Necessary emergency care with contemporaneous documentation

Question 02 • Single best answer

Which statement best distinguishes an observation from an allegation?

A. The patient reports being struck; the examiner observes a scalp laceration B. The examiner proves the assailant's identity from the patient's account C. Every reported detail is recorded as independently verified D. A patient's account cannot be recorded until a court confirms it

Question 03 • Single best answer

Consent to wound treatment automatically authorizes which additional activity?

A. Release of the full record to an employer B. None of the listed additional activities without an appropriate separate basis C. Photography for teaching publication D. Collection of unrelated forensic DNA

Question 04 • Single best answer

What is the most accurate description of decision-making capacity?

A. It is permanently absent after any psychiatric diagnosis B. It is identical to physical strength C. It is established solely by a relative's preference D. It is specific to the decision and may change over time

Question 05 • Single best answer

An investigator requests the entire medical record informally. What is the best first response?

A. Verify authority, purpose and lawful scope of disclosure B. Send every record to avoid delay C. Refuse every request regardless of law D. Post a public summary instead

Question 06 • Single best answer

Which feature is essential to valid consent?

A. A signature obtained without explanation B. Agreement produced by threats C. Consent inferred solely from silence in every setting D. A voluntary informed decision by an appropriately capable person

Question 07 • Single best answer

Does an unexpected treatment complication alone establish negligence?

A. Yes; every complication proves breach B. Yes; patient dissatisfaction is sufficient C. No; clinicians can never be negligent D. No; standard of care and causation also require assessment

Question 08 • Single best answer

Which conduct most directly threatens the integrity of medico-legal certification?

A. Signing findings that were not examined or verified B. Recording uncertainty explicitly C. Correcting an error through a dated amendment D. Referring a question beyond one's expertise

Question 09 • Single best answer

What is the best response when a patient declines a nonurgent forensic examination?

A. Threaten to withdraw all medical treatment B. Record the informed refusal and continue appropriate care within the law C. Treat refusal as proof of guilt D. Record that the examination was normal without performing it

Question 10 • Single best answer

Why should transplant-related death determination be independently governed?

A. To make family wishes irrelevant in every case B. To replace all statutory authorization C. To protect the integrity of death determination and donor safeguards D. To avoid documenting the criteria used