Ethical Dilemmas In Health Care

According to the U.S Department of Health and Human Services, the Affordable care Act from President Obama gives consumers more options and benefits when seeking coverage from insurance company. It offers lowering cost as well as gets more access to high quality of care. This law creates Patient’s Bill of Rights that is very effective to protect consumers from any abuses or fraud from insurance company. Some preventive services are available to many Americans especially Medicare recipients at no cost. Not just that, they also receive a special offer of 50 percent discount for any well-known drugs in the market place under Medicare named “donut hole.” The Affordable Care Act helps other organizations and programs to convince healthcare providers

In 1996 president, Clinton signed an act called the Health Information Portability and accountability Act (HIPAA). HIPAA was put into action because many employers were denying health coverage for pre-existing conditions. The primary goal of the law is to make it easier for people to keep health insurance, protect the confidentiality and security of healthcare information and help the healthcare industry control administrative costs. Since 1996, HIPAA has a length timeline of new proposals and rules. Such as defining covered entities and authorized release of Protect health information (PHI). Since the initial act was since there have been many advancements in technology have made the government expand on the Act adding the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) act. This act was implemented for all health systems to move to electronic charting to minimize violations and security breaches.

14). In 2009, HIPAA was modified yet again to include the Health Information and Technology and Economic Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009. The HITECH Act drastically modified the law to offer enhanced patient privacy and security, new patient rights, and increased compliance enforcement by the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) ("New Rule," 2013, para. 2). The HITECH Act put rigorous guidelines in place surrounding data protection of heath information technology to improve patient privacy and security (Grossman, 2014). Many of the new technology requirements have been incorporated with the increased use of electronic health records (EHRs) under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) ("Security Rule," n.d.). The final omnibus rule incorporates some additional regulations, but is primarily based on the final legislative changes under the HITECH Act.

As a result, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act was enacted by the federal government in 2009 (Blumenthal, 2010). This act was to improve quality, safety, and efficiency while enhancing patient privacy

According to McMillan (2011), the Health Information Technology for Economic and Critical Health (HITECH) Act was passed in 2009 to addressed privacy and security concerns related to the electronic transmission of patients’ medical records. Furthermore, the HITECH Act which has sanctioned programs intended to improve healthcare quality, safety, and efficiency using health information technology (health IT) has raised some legislative and ethical issues. McMillan stated that the HITECH Act broadened the range of privacy and security protections provided under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to include notification of security breach; education of health information privacy; and holding business associates liable,

As an employee in the healthcare industry, you may be faced with legal and ethical dilemmas. Sometimes laws may put the healthcare worker in a position that may be unethical to perform, in their eyes. There are certain laws that are passed to protect the health care worker as well as the patients. Each healthcare worker must know their rights and responsibilities to the patient and patients must know their rights in accessing the appropriate treatment. I will discuss a few legal and ethical issues regarding the laws concerning conscience clause, respondeat superior, and scope of practice.

Abortion is one of the most polarising moral issues in today’s society. It presents an ethical dilemma for many people and especially all healthcare professionals involved. Firstly, this essay will begin by briefly outlining the highly controversial issue of abortion, discuss why this topic draws fierce debate, for and against, and explain the current legal standing in the UK today. It will then move on to explain how different ethical models can be used in relation to ethical dilemmas, in particular Thiroux’s Five Principles of Ethic’s. Using this model to discuss how each principle individually applies to this contested issue it will then conclude by summarising and highlighting the main conflicts

Ethics are a set of moral principles that serve as a guiding philosophy for behavior. Consequently it is not a surprise that ethical dilemmas occur daily in the health care setting. Any nurse who refuses to provide care for a patient faces an ethical dilemma (Kuhn, 2012, pp. 412-418). The reasons given for refusal range anywhere from a conflict of personal values to fear of personal risk of injury. Nurses do have the right, at times, to refuse patient care assignments. The decision to accept or reject an assignment must be based upon a judgment by the nurse of the nurse 's ability to provide competent patient care. This paper aims to show both sides of the argument when it comes to nurses refusing a patient assignment. One side believes that nurses has the right to refuse patient assignment, as they must be true to themselves if they want to perform their best on the job. On the other hand, the other side believes that it is the nurse’s responsibility to care for all patients and, therefore nurses cannot simply refuse a patient.

I blew the whistle in this situation when the lack of ethical care for residents and work ethics fell short of the normal standards. As a care provider one must always be aware of that the dignity of the client when it comes to their care. I return to my regular position after three months of working graveyards to find that the residents were being brought to the dining room in the hospital gowns. There was no regard for the resident’s dignity. Their backs were exposed and often the gown was exposing their chest. No one took in count how the resident must feel going into the dining room so exposed. The staff could of a least put on clothing over top of the gown or a sweater to hide what they were wearing. And use a lap blanket so they

Healthcare professionals will be faced with ethical dilemmas throughout their career, particularly in the hospital environment. Having an education regarding professional healthcare ethics will provide some direction in how to best address these dilemmas at a time when either the patient or their family is in need of making decisions for themselves or their family member. It can be difficult for healthcare professionals to weigh professional protocol against their own personal beliefs and ethical understandings when determining critical care for their patient.

There is three possible solutions for this dilemma that are all viable. All are ethical and are ways to solve the dilemma, but they all result in different outcomes that would completely change the case. This creates a dilemma for the doctor "When a patient, or surrogate(s) acting on behalf of a patient, refuses recommended treatment, a dilemma can be created for health care professionals" (Policy, n.d.). Each case regarding patient refusal should be treated according to the case "Each instance of treatment refusal should be considered individually to determine the response of health care professionals" (Policy, n.d.) The first solution would go against the patients wishes to inject him with the serum but would agree with the principles of

Last week I had the opportunity to talk to Mr. R who was brought in to the hospital due to a workplace injury. The referral was put through by the attending physician indicating that there was concerns of substance use. I started the conversation by introducing my role as a hospital social worker and tried to build report by asking Mr. R how he was managing at the hospital. Being transparent is important and explaining the reason for the visit helps in creating trust for the therapeutic intervention. I probed Mr. R about his alcohol use and if he identified that as being an issue for him. Mr. R indicated that he has been using alcohol for over a long period and reports this as a part of his daily social life, which makes it hard for abstinence.

The ethical principle that was violated which could result to a civil act based facts was the patient right more specifically right of privacy. Whenever patient information is withholding and could not be given to the patient as long as the patient is deemed competent regardless of the medical status, this considers as a violation which can be prosecuted. According to Thomas and Moore (2013), individuals are entitled to make decisions about their healthcare if they are deemed competent. To be competent is the capacity or the ability of the person to understand information presented, to appreciate the consequences of acting or not acting on that information, and to make a choice. This patient was deprived from his own information which is entitled

In 2009, the United States enacted a sweeping economic recovery bill entitled the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. As part of the controversial bill, the U.S. took on the imperatives of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. This dimension of the total bill has been more positively received than its umbrella legislation, primarily because it proceeds from an assumption that most members of both the public and the federal government can agree upon. Namely, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (2009) asserts, the HITECH Act operates on the understanding that improved Health Information Technology (HIT) will ultimately result in improved system efficiency, reduced wastefulness and, most importantly, better health outcomes. However, as the discussion here notes, the relatively positive reception to the HITECH Act is not without its reservations. Specifically, a host of security and privacy concerns have come to the forefront since the adoption of legislation. The discussion below also considers that repairing these concerns is the shared responsibility of the U.S. government and the health facilities and providers that must ultimately work directly with sensitive patient information and evolving technology.

Respect for Autonomy is one of the four principles of Health care ethics . It means that a competent patient has the ability of self-determination devoid of external influence. Traditionally it has always been held the medical professional is the foremost authority in determining the best course of treatment, irrespective of a patient’s wishes. This has evolved over the years and now respecting a patient’s decision is paramount.