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MODULE 04 PROJECT – ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Was the nursing manager legally compliant with protecting patient information? Explain the legal risks and support with federal legislations and professional expectations, such as HIPAA and professional codes of ethics.
In this case, the nursing manager was legally compliant with protecting the patient information. An important part of a nurse's ethical code is maintaining the privacy of patients' medical records, and the nursing manager complied with all applicable laws to do so. As a nurse manager, the primary responsibility is to guarantee that all of your subordinates adhere to the highest standards of patient confidentiality. Title II: HIPAA Administrative Simplification specifies national standards for processing healthcare transactions, including protection of patient information, in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) (Moore, & Frye, 2019). The Department of Health and Human Services defines protected health information in accordance with the HIPAA privacy guidelines. As stated by (), nurses are expected to adhere to a code of professional behavior that stresses the importance of patient safety, accountability and responsibility, and personal integrity.
What bearing does the age and religious requests have on the patient's case? Are there medical and ethical laws that supersede the parent's requests?
The 13-year-old patient is a juvenile under federal and state law, which means that the child's informed consent is not secondary to the parents' choice. Choices and ethical concerns are influenced because the legal age of consent for a patient's decisions and requests is 18 years old. (Kilbride & Joffe, 2018) claims that 14-year olds are deemed to have thinking and cognitive capacities, therefore, being able to make demands that may be examined between the care provider and the nursing experts in charge.
According to Gordon et al. (2018), the right to life of every child is the most important factor, even if the family's religious views differ from those of other families. Regarding patient safety, medical ethics and legislation put a high value on a child's capacity for consenting to life-saving or life-threatening treatment, regardless of the parents' desires.
What is the role and importance of communication among UCCO facilities, particularly in reference to compliance and ethical standards?
Communication is an essential part of providing high-quality healthcare. According to Ratna (2019), competent nursing professionals must possess solid communication skills since they are essential for enhancing quality care as nurses strive to meet the needs of their patients. Healthcare personnel would communicate information and medical history amongst UCCO institutions to promote patient safety. This would ensure high levels of accountability and responsibility.
The foundation of healthcare is effective communication. To give safe, high-quality, and patient-centred care, we need to communicate effectively with everyone involved in the patient's care. Healthcare transformation can only be achieved via effective communication, both vertically from the top down and horizontally across all levels of care. Put another way, it's not enough to encourage staff and patients alike to take advantage of an open-door policy under the system leadership. Communication best practices must be woven into a company's culture, evaluated via patient and worker surveys, and held responsible for their role in furthering communication excellence across the whole business. To comprehend today's healthcare culture, it is essential to recognize that the way information is presented just as significant as the content itself. As a result, there are many patient handoffs and contacts with various administrative and care workers with varying backgrounds and expertise involved in the delivery of healthcare (Ratna, 2019). There is an exchange of information in every handoff and engagement, whether between caregivers or between caregiver and patient. It is essential that the information presented be corrected in clinical, administrative, and interpersonal contexts and that the sharing itself be open, honest, and compassionate.
Improved communication has been associated with better patient outcomes, safer work conditions, fewer adverse events, shorter transfer delays, and reduced duration of stay in several studies. Patient outcomes, such as patient memory and knowledge and patient adherence to treatment, are reliably linked to caregiver communication habits.
What are the ethical and professional factors of using social media?
In today's society, social media usage is commonplace, and it is not unexpected that it has been included in the practice of nursing. Nurses, however, are urged to obey social networking principles that provide ethical and professional norms for social media usage. The privacy and security of patient data are critical considerations for social networking, which should help advance patient privacy (Arigo et al., 2018). Content on social media posts should be guided by professional aspects, including accountability and responsibility of nurses' choices and actions to ensure patients' dignity. The use of social media in the nursing field should be guided by ethical considerations of trust, respect for patient rights and dignity. The nurse's use of social media should be guided by the institution's regulations on social media usage, ensuring patient confidentiality and professionalism.
Were the reactions to the patient's case illegal or just unethical? How does this align with UCCO's mission, values, and strategic action plans? How does it compare to your own personal beliefs and values?
In this patient's situation, the nurse's social media profile does not contain the legally defined definition of protected health information, but it nevertheless qualifies for a number of charges of unethical practice and unprofessional behavior. Even if it is not, the immoral nature of the case demonstrates its inconsistency with UCCO's strategic intentions. Despite the case's main purpose being to share information and collaborate on patient care, the choice to release the material without the manager's consent is antithetical to my own personal values. Regarding patient dignity, privacy, accountability and responsibility, I believe this case is a sharp contradiction to my views.
References
Arigo, D., Pagoto, S., Carter-Harris, L., Lillie, S. E., & Nebeker, C. (2018). Using social media for health research: Methodological and ethical considerations for recruitment and intervention delivery. Digital health, 4, 2055207618771757.
Gordon, B. S., Keogh, M., Davidson, Z., Griffiths, S., Sharma, V., Marin, D., ... & Dangayach, N. S. (2018). Addressing spirituality during critical illness: A review of current literature. Journal of critical care, 45, 76-81.
Kilbride, M. K., & Joffe, S. (2018). The new age of patient autonomy: implications for the patient-physician relationship. Jama, 320(19), 1973-1974.
Moore, W., & Frye, S. (2019). Review of HIPAA, Part 1: history, protected health information, and privacy and security rules. Journal of nuclear medicine technology, 47(4), 269-272.
Ratna, H. (2019). The importance of effective communication in healthcare practice. Harvard Public Health Review, 23, 1-6.