Ethics issues in healthcare (Essay Sample)

Healthcare Ethic Issues Student’s Name Institution Healthcare Ethic Issues Bioethicists believe medical practitioners should exercise ethical tenets of justice and sovereignty to avoid difficult problem-solving situations (Reamer, 2018). Healthcare facilities encounter legal and ethical cases progressively. Additionally, professionals in these facilities are forced to make difficult decisions due to pressure that results from limited resources. For instance, in a particular healthcare facility, a plastic surgery client asks for a date with the plastic surgeon on the discharge date. This encounter embarrasses the surgeon and she quickly declines the proposal. Later that evening, during a cocktail party with friends, the plastic surgeon reveals the name of the client. One of her friends later goes ahead and humiliates the plastic surgery client on a social media platform. Consequently, the client sues the health facility. This healthcare situation involves legal and ethical issues that are commonly faced by health facilities. The major ethical and legal issues that arise from this situation are patient data privacy and confidentiality, and professional boundaries that have severe implications for both the health facility and the patient. Data privacy and confidentiality In compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, all relevant entities are required to safeguard and protect healthcare information against prohibited disclosure (Mendelson & Wolf, 2017). Therefore, medical practitioners are not allowed to share patient health information. Disclosure of confidential health information is only permitted without individual authorization for situations such as public health functions, organ transplants, judicial proceedings, or when the individual is a victim of domestic violence. It is against the ethics of health care practice to break a patient's trust. Therefore, by disclosing her client's name to her friends without the client's authorization or any allowed situation, the plastic surgeon has violated the trust of her client. Since a patient's trust is critical in treatment in healthcare facilities, such an act could result in future loss of trust by clients. This is a violation of the medical practice ethics in relevance to HIPPA, therefore, health workers must adhere to the legalities and ethics of medical practices and follow the HIPPA regulations. Professional boundaries Notably, the plastic surgery client’s request for a date with the surgeon is a professional ethics issue. According to professional ethics and sexual exploitation regulations, and out-of-line involvement of professionals and clients, for instance, dating, is prohibited (Taylor, 2018). Researches indicate that in healthcare facilities, patients are the most vulnerable. Successful treatments and recoveries can result in escalated feelings of appreciation by the patient that may otherwise be interpreted as affection. Correspondingly, the success of the plastic surgery process is a great joy to the vulnerable client that resulted in the urge to ask for a date. The plastic surgeon, however, portrays strict adherence to professional ethics by maintaining professional boundaries. Therefore, health workers should always respect and acknowledge the vulnerability of their clients. Interaction between patients and clients should only involve empathy and natural concern. However, legal intervention is useful in case of the absence of mutual respect between the health workers and patients. Implications Adherence or violation of any regulations, in this case, legal and ethical laws related to health care, usually has corresponding positive and negative implications for both the health care providers and patients. Regarding the plastic surgery healthcare facility, the surgeon is responsible for a breach of patient privacy. According to the doctrine of 'respondeat superior', an employer is subject to an answer for an employee's misconduct within the employment boundaries. These implications further narrow down to the employee, in this case, the plastic surgeon, who loses her jo...