Nursing error of omission as a material element of crime against persons: a case report of Khomeyni shahr hospital

missed Nursing care often causes damage to the patient during the care and treatment process and can lead to serious damages to the health of the patient. Missed nursing care can take place in two ways: 1- failure to act properly. 2- Nursing error of omission.
in the present paper a descriptive approach is adopted and attempts are made to describe a practical case (the Khomeyni shahr case which led to conviction of the health care staff and consideration of long prison terms for them) without any arbitration about the the performance of medical staff, in order to answer this question: how nursing error of omission can lead to criminal liability of nurses? The present paper also seeks to figure out whether omission can, in certain circumstances, constitute a material element of crimes that are usually committed by affirmative actions. Investigation of this question and responding to that in crimes against persons requires consideration of the concept of omission and position of the Iranian legal system in this regard.
The analysis suggests that nursing error of omission, just like failure to accomplish other associated material acts, can cause harm to the patient and result in criminal liability of nurses.
it is necessary to organize proper training courses in order to familiarize nurses and doctors with the relevant laws and regulations. Employment of judges and lawyers in this regard should be one of the priorities of the respective organizations. In addition, review of practical cases such as the case of Khomeyni shahr hospital in Isfahan, by the competent judges during the in-service training courses for nurses and doctors can greatly help them deal with such issues.