Ethical and Legal Environment

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE COUNTY

PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM

GROUP RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT – PBHL 0497

FALL 2026

The group research assignment is designed to challenge students to develop a strategy to address

ethical and legal issues at a health care facility. To successfully complete the group research

assignment, you must address the key factors involved and forces that affect the situation using

key terms and theory from the course textbook.

You will form teams of approximately three students to address the issues involved and prepare

an appropriate response. Each team member will receive the same grade, so each member is

expected to do their part to contribute to the success of the assignment. There will be a peer

evaluation form where you will score, provide feedback, and express concerns and/or praise for

your team members. This peer evaluation form is due at the time of submission and will determine

the final class participation grade for each student. Be sure to notify me if there are any questions,

comments, or concerns so that I may intervene as early as possible.

Ethical and Legal Environment

You have recently joined the management staff of UMBC General Hospital. You are an affiliate

of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) and you want to build the best set of

credentials in the shortest possible time. Your long-term plan is to become a Chief Executive

Officer.

You are assigned responsibility for several support departments as well as some clinical areas. You

quickly realize that the HSO is very political. Much of what happens at the senior level is the result

of personal relationships.

One of your departments, Maintenance, is responsible for the grounds. You determine that grounds

crews were being sent to the homes of senior members of the Governing Body to maintain their

lawns, shrubs, and trees. You asked the Maintenance Director to explain and were advised that the

practice had a long history. The Maintenance Director suggested that it would be best not to make

any changes. When you asked for a cost estimate of the grounds work being done at the private

homes, the Maintenance Director refused to give it. The Maintenance Director said they didn’t

want to incur the wrath of the Governing Body members who were benefiting.

Shortly after speaking with the Maintenance Director, you have lunch with the Laboratory

Director. Without discussing specifics, you describe the problem in Maintenance. The Lab

Director exclaimed, “That’s nothing!” and described how two Governing Body members were

selling reagents, supplies, and equipment to the Laboratory at what seemed like higher than market

prices. When you asked if they had done anything about it, the Lab Director replied that their

predecessor had questioned the practice and had been fired.

Please respond to the following questions in developing your strategy to deal with this situation:

1. Identify each of the ethical problems concerning the Governing Body members and the

senior managers. List all parties that could be involved in this situation (directly and

indirectly). Do similar problems face those not directly involved?

2. Are the grounds maintenance and the sale of reagents, supplies, and equipment to the

laboratory ethically different? State your reasons. Are the two likely to be distinguished

in the “real world”? What questions would you, the manager, have and who/what would

you ask?

3. What steps should managers like you take if they have the moral courage to risk their

jobs to try and solve the problems? Short of risking their jobs, what steps could they

take? Draft 3-4 courses of action (or nonaction). Describe the desired ethical results.

List the consequences of action and nonaction. Identify the morally superior course.

4. What sources of assistance are there for you outside of the organization? How should

they be involved? Identify them in the decision-making process.

5. Summarize the overall situation and the expected outcome as a result of each action (or

nonaction) taken.

The assignment must be at least 10 pages in length, double spaced, no more than 20 pages. The

format will include a title page, applicable charts/graphs, subtitles identifying each topic

addressed and a bibliography/works cited page. Multiple references should be utilized in order

to provide details and perspectives from all vantage points. These references should include

the course textbook.

The assignment is to be an expression of the group’s research efforts, creativity of ideas, an

indication of their understanding of the material covered in the course, and comprehensive

outside research.

As each team member will receive the same grade, it is imperative to alert the instructor if any

member is not participating fully, so that appropriate action may be taken.

The assignment is worth 225 points as indicated in the course syllabus. Late assignments are

subject to a reduction in points.

I am available as needed to assist you with any question regarding the assignment.

The assignment is due Tuesday, November 24th.