Legal And Ethical Issues In Health Care

A Community health center can be defined as a center where high quality primary and preventive healthcare is provided regardless of the ability of the patient’s financial situation. There are some basic characteristics a community health center must possess to be fully functional. Some of which are:

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

The Long-Term Care Act was to benefit and work with seniors to improve their overall well-being. The Long-Term Care Homes Act guarantees to help residents living within the long-term care system to receive dependable, high-quality, and safe care for the residents. It is often common for seniors to adjust when placed in long-term care as this is a new and challenging transition for the senior and their families. The commonplace goal is to have a long-term care home environment where residents feel comfortable and at home, where residents are treated with the respect they deserve, and have the proper supports and services that cherish to their particular needs for their overall health and well-being. These services are physical and mental health related services- especially one that relates to the Community Worker Program such as Community and Social Workers that are crucial in a senior’s life often.

As you know Community Health Centers serve a vital role in providing primary care, dental, behavioral, pharmacy, vision and a variety of complementary services to our most vulnerable patients and communities. Health centers generate millions of dollars both in economic impact and overall cost-savings to the health care system.

Community care involves different services provided by local communities to assist with individuals who are in a long-term care situation. According to “Administration on Aging,” Congress passed the Older American Act (OAA) in 1965 in response to the concern about a lack of community social services for older persons (2011). The OAA has provided a wide array of services for the organization and delivery of services to the older population and their caregivers. Adult day service programs are designed to provide a place to go while a family caregiver goes to work (“National Clearinghouse for Long Term Care Information,” n.d.). These programs vary by location. Some programs provide health care services, others provide social activities, and there are a few that provide both services. Some social activities include various educational or exercise classes as

The community clinic focuses on pediatric, adult health care, women’s health, dentistry, WIC, pharmacy and integrated

For Lakeview, some of these ethical challenges often include end-of-life issues (issues about nutrition and treatment), treatment options and medication, especially the practice of covert medication by mixing medication in food without informing the resident, but also resident’s autonomy and decision-making capacity, and communication and cooperation between the healthcare employees. Jackie also described respect and privacy as ethical challenges. Each issue that may transpire is taken care of situationally, but professionally. Luckily, Jackie said, they haven’t had any major ethical issues in quite a while, which is great!

The Community Health Center provides a service called Better Health Clinic that can enhance adult health and wellness by providing contraceptive services, pregnancy testing and counseling, achieving pregnancy, basic infertility services, preconception health, sexually transmitted disease services, breast cancer screening, cervical cancer screening, and other preventative health services. Social services can assist with applying for W.I.C. and ACA. They can also render assistance with adoption and stay at home programs.

A few months ago Denise placed her Mother in an assisted living facility. She is wrestling with the guilt and stress of assisting in her Mother’s care. Denise has two sisters in the area as well as an adult son, but feels she is the primary caregiver for her Mother.

A community hospital is presently in quadrant no.3 which means it is low in value-added services and does not have a wide range of expertise and hence services to

Nurses are constantly challenged by changes which occur in their practice environment and are under the influence of internal or external factors. Due to the increased complexity of the health system, nowadays nurses are faced with ethical and legal decisions and often come across dilemmas regarding patient care. From this perspective a good question to be raised would be whether or not nurses have the necessary background, knowledge and skills to make appropriate legal and ethical decisions. Even though most nursing programs cover the ethical and moral issues in health care, it is questionable if new nurses have the depth of knowledge and understanding of these issues and apply them in their practice

It is important that we act in a way that is ethical, legal, and commendable. Medical professionals struggle with healthcare dilemmas that are not experienced by the general public. Medical-ethical decisions have become increasingly complicated with the advancement of medical science and technology. (Fremgen) Just like the government has laws for citizens, not having laws in healthcare would allow people to do anything they want. It is important that we study the ethics and laws of healthcare, because if we were put in a situation it is essential that we know the difference between right and wrong. In the article I found, it talks about a nurse who refuses to give CPR to an older woman who collapsed in a senior residence where she works. This article has many more ethical issues than legal issues.

The community model is focusing on giving stakeholders more of say in how health care solutions are provided. Under this approach, they will play a part in working with administrators, doctors, nurses and patients to identify the best solutions. At the heart of this strategy, involves using primary care providers who can cover the basic issues surrounding someone's health. This is a part of historical trends that were focused on reducing the underlying costs for these services and increasing the total amounts of quality. When this happens, there will be a transformation in the way everyone is able to receive a host of services. ("The Role of Community Participation," 2010)

Everyday, healthcare professionals are faced with ethical dilemmas in their workplace. These ethical dilemmas need to be addressed in order to provide the best care for the patient. Healthcare professionals have to weigh their own personal beliefs, professional beliefs, ethical understandings, and several other factors to decide what the best care for their patient might be. This is illustrated in Mrs. Smith’s case. Mrs. Smith is an 85 year old who has suffered from a large stroke that extends to both of her brains hemispheres which has left her unconscious. She only has some brain stem reflexes and requires a ventilator for support. She is unable to communicate how she wishes to proceed with her healthcare. Mrs. Smith’s children, Sara and Frank have different views regarding their mother’s plan of care. The decision that needs to be made is whether to prolong Mrs. Smith’s life, as Sara would like to do, or stop all treatments and care, as Frank feels his mother would want. In the healthcare field, there are situations similar to this case that happen daily where moral and ethical judgment is necessary to guide the decision that would be best for the patient. The purpose of this paper is to explore and discuss, compare and contrast the personal and professional values, ethical principles, and legal issues regarding Mrs. Smith’s quality of life and further plan of care.

Senior living communities involve a various level of care and offer different services among the assisted living, independent living, Alzheimer’s and memory care, Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRCs), active adult, nursing and long-term care, and respite care services.