California Certifying Board for Medical Assistants (CCBMA) Practice Test 2025 – Comprehensive All-in-One Guide to Exam Success!

The term for failing to provide professional care is negligence. This concept refers specifically to the failure to act with the level of care that a reasonably prudent professional would have exercised in a similar situation. In the healthcare context, negligence can occur when a medical professional overlooks a duty of care or deviates from accepted standards, resulting in harm to a patient.

Negligence distinguishes itself from related terms such as malpractice, which encompasses negligence but specifically refers to a breach of duty by a healthcare professional in the delivery of services. While misconduct and incompetence may imply a lack of professionalism or ability, respectively, it is negligence that directly captures the essence of failure in care delivery that leads to patient harm. Thus, in the context of professional care, negligence accurately describes a caregiver's failure to provide the standard of care expected in their role.