Ethical Dilemma in Healthcare: Case Scenario of ER Scene 1

May 28, 202
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1
Incident in the
ER Scene 1

May 28, 20232
Case Scenario: ER Scene 1
 The case scenario involves an Emergency Room
situation with an 83 year old diabetic patient
 The patient was presented to the ER with signs of
respiratory distress
 The patient has a history of diabetes
 He was accompanied by his daughter
 Patient’s daughter also informed that the patient had
Alzheimer’s
 ER staff’s assessment revealed that the patient showed
signs of dementia, but that could be attributed to the
confusion and stress caused by the respiratory distress
syndrome as well as the environment of the ER.

May 28, 20233
Case Scenario: ER Scene 1
(continued...)
 Physical examination revealed that the patient
had gangrene on his right foot
 The gangrene was found to have spread to his
ankle
 Below the knee amputation was recommended
for the patient
 The patient however refused amputation
 The social worker was informed by the patient
that he did not want the amputation as he
wanted to die with his body intact and that he
had lived long enough

May 28, 20234
Problem situation:
 Patient’s daughter however insisted upon the surgery as she
wanted her father to recover
 A surgery was performed on the patient upon his daughter’s
insistence
 A complete state checkup was not performed on the patient to
understand if the patient has the capacity to make his care related
decisions
 The medical report from nurse revealed that the patient had mild
dementia which might be due to his respiratory distress and
environmental stress
 The patient’s daughter was afraid of an elder neglect investigation
 The social worker expressed concerns that the daughter might
have failed to provided proper care to the patient since she did not
seek care for the open wound but instead on the respiratory
condition