Advanced Healthcare Code of Ethics

Competency

Assess current legal and ethical principles and the application of such principles in healthcare practice.

Instructions

You have recently been promoted to Health Services Manager at Three Mountains Regional Hospital, a small hospital located in a mid-size city in the Midwest. Three Mountains is a general medical and surgical facility with 400 beds. Last year there were approximately 62,000 emergency visits and 15,000 admissions. More than 6,000 outpatient and 10,000 inpatient surgeries were performed.

Three Mountains was recently in the news after employee emails were published in which patients were discussed in very negative terms, although patient names were not used. The employees that sent these emails were fired. The CEO and the Board of Directors has tasked you with developing an intake packet for new patients that will reestablish patient trust in the facility, employees, and staff. The patient packet will address new patient concerns by including information about HIPAA, informed consent, a confidential health history report, and a living will. The new packet will also include the values of the organization and a code of ethics.