Term
| 1.) Compare and contrast the terms ethics and bioethics and identify five principles of bioethics. |
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Definition
| Ethics is the study of philosophical beliefs about what is considered right or wrong in a society. Bioethics is the study of specific ethical questions that arise in health care. The five principles of bioethics are beneficence, autonomy, justice, fidelity, and veracity. |
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Term
| 2.) Discuss at least five patient rights, including the patient's right to treatment, right to refuse treatment, and right to informed consent. |
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Definition
Right to treatment
Right to refuse treatment
Right to informed consent
Rights of confidentiality |
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Term
| 3.) Identify the steps nurses are advised to take if they suspect negligence or illegal activity on the part if a professional colleague or peer. |
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Definition
| In most states the nurse has a duty to intervene and to report risks of harm to the patient. Documenting evidence first should be done before making serious accusations. It is advised to communicate concerns directly to the person involved first. If this does not resolve the problem, then a supervisor should be informed, and they should intervene. If that does not work, the nurse will have no choice but to take immediate action to protect the patient. If the problem is not life-threatening, the appropriate authority, such as the state board of nursing, should be notified. |
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Term
| 4.) Apply legal considerations of patient privilege A. after a patient has died, B. if the patient tests positive for HIV, and C. if the patient's employer states a "needs to know". |
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Definition
A.) After a patient has died you cannot share any priviledged information about them, the same way as when the patient was alive. The Dead Man's Statute protects patient information if the patient is not alive.
B.) Some states mandate that healthcare providers notify the spouse or partner of an HIV positive patient about their risk. It is the nurses responsibility to understand the laws of their own jurisdiction of practice.
C.) Giving information to a patient's employer is a HIPAA violation, unless the patient has given consent. |
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Term
| 5.) Provide explanation for situations in which health care professionals have a duty to break patient confidentiality. |
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Definition
| Most states have a Duty to Protect law. This law usually includes assessing and predicting the patient's danger of violence toward another, identifying the specific persons being threatened, and taking appropriate action to protect the identified victims. All states have statutes for reporting child abuse, and many states have statutes for reporting elder abuse or abuse of disabled individuals. These statutes and the process that should be followed vary from state to state and it is the nurses job to understand the statutes that apply to their jurisdiction of practice. |
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Term
| 6.) Discuss a patient's civil rights and how they pertain to restraint and seclusion. |
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Definition
| The history of a patient's rights regarding restraint and seclusion has been filled with abuse and the tactic of using restraints as a first line of treatment. Restraints should only be used as a last measure of defense to protect the patient or others from serious harm. Even restraint from medication should be used as a last resort. New legislation for restraint mandates that restraints should be used for the shortest time possible. Seclusion should only be used when the patient is extremely dangerous to their own person or to others in the environment. If a restraint or seclusion is needed a doctors order is mandatory and it needs to be reviewed every 24 hours. |
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Term
| 7.) Develop awareness of the balance between the patient's legal concepts relevant in nursing and psychiatric mental health nursing: A. duty to intervene, B. documentation, and C. confidentiality. |
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Definition
A. A psychiatric nurse has a duty to intervene when a patient is a direct threat to themselves or to another individual. Also if the patient is being harmed by another individual such as a parent or caregiver, that must be reported for the safety of the patient.
B. A patient has a right to view any medical records associated with themselves, however the medical record should remain at the medical institution and should not be given out. Only persons who have a specific need to see a patients file, such as a member of the patients care team, are allowed to view the file. A nurse who is not directly working with that patient does not, and therefore should not, view the patients file.
C. All patient interaction should be conducted in a discrete and private manner. Only a patient can wave their right to confidentiality. The only exception to confidentiality is when the patient is a danger to themselves or another, or if the patient is in danger of being harmed by another. |
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Term
| 8.) Identify legal terminology, applicable to psychiatric nursing and explain the significance of each term. |
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Definition
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