Medical-Legal and Ethical Issues Flashcards
7 cards from real CCHP practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Medical-Legal and Ethical Issues flashcards as text
A correctional nurse discovers that a colleague is falsifying medication administration records. What is the nurse's primary ethical obligation?
Answer: Report the behavior to supervisory or regulatory authorities
Nurses have an ethical and legal duty to report unsafe or fraudulent practices that endanger patient safety.
Under HIPAA, which of the following is a permissible disclosure of incarcerated patient health information WITHOUT authorization?
Answer: Providing records to correctional officers for legitimate security purposes
HIPAA permits disclosure to correctional institutions when necessary for health and safety of the inmate or others in the facility.
A patient in custody refuses a prescribed antipsychotic medication. The court has not issued a forced treatment order. What is the appropriate action?
Answer: Document the refusal and respect the patient's decision unless imminent danger exists
Competent patients retain the right to refuse medication; healthcare providers must document and monitor but cannot override autonomy without a court order.
The ethical principle of 'non-maleficence' is BEST described as:
Answer: Avoiding actions that cause unnecessary harm
Non-maleficence means refraining from causing unnecessary harm or injury to a patient.
A correctional health provider is pressured by custody staff to share a patient's mental health diagnosis. Under what condition is this permissible?
Answer: Only when the information is directly necessary for the safe management of the inmate
Mental health information in corrections may be shared with security staff only when it is directly relevant to maintaining the safety of the individual or others.
Which document serves as the primary national standard for ethical practice in correctional health care?
Answer: NCCHC Standards for Health Services in Prisons and Jails
NCCHC (National Commission on Correctional Health Care) standards are the recognized benchmark for ethical and quality correctional health practice.
A death-row inmate asks the correctional physician to certify he is medically fit for execution. Which ethical stance do most professional medical organizations endorse?
Answer: Physicians should refuse participation as it violates the duty not to harm
The AMA and most medical associations hold that physician participation in executions violates medical ethics regardless of legality.