Ethical and Legal Principles Flashcards
7 cards from real CARN practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Ethical and Legal Principles flashcards as text
A patient in a methadone clinic is also prescribed benzodiazepines by an outside psychiatrist. The addiction nurse's ethical duty regarding this information is to:
Answer: Inform the patient of the interaction risk and coordinate care with the prescriber
The nurse has a duty to educate the patient about potentially dangerous drug interactions and facilitate interprofessional communication to ensure safe care.
Which statement best describes the ethical concept of 'therapeutic privilege' in addiction nursing?
Answer: Nurses may withhold information if they believe it will cause patient harm
Therapeutic privilege is the controversial and generally disfavored concept that clinicians may withhold information believed to be harmful to the patient.
A patient discloses current active child abuse during a substance use treatment session. The CARN's legal obligation is to:
Answer: File a mandatory report with child protective services immediately
Mandatory child abuse reporting laws supersede 42 CFR Part 2 protections, requiring immediate reporting to child protective services.
An addiction nurse is aware that a patient's insurance company is denying coverage for residential treatment using outdated clinical criteria. The ethical principle guiding advocacy for this patient is primarily:
Answer: Justice
Justice requires fair and equitable access to treatment; nurses should advocate when systemic barriers prevent patients from receiving appropriate care.
A CARN who is in personal recovery from alcohol use disorder begins working at a substance use treatment center. Which action is MOST ethically appropriate regarding disclosure?
Answer: Use professional judgment to determine if selective disclosure serves therapeutic goals
Self-disclosure of personal recovery should be guided by whether it serves the patient's therapeutic interests, not the nurse's own needs.
Informed consent for medication-assisted treatment requires that patients receive information about all of the following EXCEPT:
Answer: The nurse's personal opinion about the best treatment choice
Informed consent requires objective information about benefits, risks, and alternatives; the nurse's personal opinion is not a required component.
A patient who is HIV-positive and in addiction treatment refuses to disclose their status to sexual partners. The nurse's ethical tension exists between:
Answer: Patient confidentiality and duty to protect third parties
The nurse faces a conflict between protecting patient confidentiality under 42 CFR Part 2 and the ethical/legal duty to protect identifiable third parties from harm.