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Examples Of Legal And Ethical Dilemmas In Health Care

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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. In 1973, the case of Roe v. Wade took place. Abortion issues were discussed during this time and it was determined by the Supreme Court that the idea of conscience clause be initiated (Berlinger, 2008). Conscience clause legislation provides legal protection for health care workers that choose not to participate in treatment of care, if it violates their moral or religious belief (Berlinger, 2008). Beliefs on abortions, is an example of how the conscience clause legislation may cause a dilemma. The physician does not believe in abortions and during a routine visit the doctor discovered that the patient is experiencing an ectopic pregnancy. Although the patient is currently asymptomatic, the physician understands that this puts the patient’s health at risk. What would the physician do to handle the situation? Under the conscience clause law, this physician would be protected, as performing an abortion goes against their religious or ethical beliefs. The physician would have to consider that although this goes against their beliefs, the patient’s health is at risk and subsequently cause an ethical dilemma. From the patient’s view, this law may be intrusive and violate their constitutional right of choice (Berlinger, 2008). Each worker within the health industry are trained to know basic information regarding the specialty in which they practice in. When practicing, it is imperative to understand what is legally within your scope of practice, so appropriate care can be provided to the patient. “Scope of practice refers to the activities a health care professional is allowed to perform as indicated in their licensure,

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