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 nurse realizes they made a medication error that did not harm the patient. What is the ethical course of action?
Answer: Report the error through the facility's incident reporting system and notify the provider
Ethical practice requires transparent reporting of all medication errors through proper channels, regardless of whether harm occurred, to improve patient safety.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects individuals with substance use disorders in which of the following scenarios?
Answer: A person in recovery from alcohol use disorder who is denied a job promotion
The ADA protects individuals who are in recovery from substance use disorders from employment discrimination, but does not protect current illegal drug use.
Which scenario represents a violation of professional boundaries in addiction nursing?
Answer: A nurse provides a patient in financial distress with their personal cell phone number for after-hours contact
Providing personal contact information to patients blurs professional boundaries and creates a dual relationship outside the therapeutic setting.
A state law requires treatment programs to report patients with active opioid use disorder to the department of motor vehicles. This law conflicts with 42 CFR Part 2. The CARN should:
Answer: Consult the facility's legal counsel to determine the appropriate course
When federal and state law appear to conflict regarding 42 CFR Part 2 protections, facilities should seek legal counsel to determine the appropriate course of action.
A patient in addiction treatment is also a licensed healthcare professional. Under 42 CFR Part 2, the treatment program may report the patient to their licensing board:
Answer: Only with the patient's written consent that specifically authorizes this disclosure
42 CFR Part 2 requires specific written patient consent for disclosure to licensing boards; no automatic professional reporting exception exists.
The ethical principle of fidelity in addiction nursing refers primarily to:
Answer: Keeping promises and maintaining trust within the therapeutic relationship
Fidelity involves maintaining loyalty, keeping commitments, and honoring agreements made with patients to build and sustain therapeutic trust.
A patient with severe alcohol use disorder has decision-making capacity and refuses a life-saving liver transplant evaluation. The nurse's ethical obligation is to:
Answer: Ensure the patient has full information and document the informed refusal
A patient with intact decision-making capacity has the right to refuse treatment; the nurse must ensure informed refusal is documented after providing complete information.