Ethical Dilemmas in Healthcare Management

HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT 1
Healthcare Management
Student Name
Institution
Date

HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT 2
Question 1
There are several ethical dilemmas that are encountered in the professional lives of a clinical
engineer. One incident occurred with a patient called Mr. X, who had been undergoing treatment
at the cardiac hospital. Mr X did not want his spouse to know about his medical conditions. In
one of the clinic session, he was diagnosed with a rare heart complication, and the doctor
required him to be under constant care. This meant that Mr X would need someone to help him
with basic duties in order to reduce movement and not to overwork the heart. The doctor was
required to inform Mr X’s next of kin who was his spouse. This was an ethical dilemma since
telling their spouse will be breaching the patient’s confidentiality, on the other hand, the patient
required medical care to prevent the cardiac condition from becoming worse (Young, 2017).
Other ethical concern was when a medical company comes to install new equipment in the
hospital, and they left all the clinical engineers with chocolates and t-shirts as gifts. This posed
an ethical dilemma since it would be rude to reject a gift, and on the other hand, receiving a gift
is against hospital rules
Another ethical dilemma faced in professional life is falsification of the record times. The
machines used to mark the reporting and exit times of the members of staff are designed by
clinical engineers. Most members would approach the clinical engineering department to ask for
an adjustment in the time they reported to work to avoid having a tardy. Also, some of the staff
who would like to leave work early would come to the clinical engineering office to ask for a
false record to be added to their files. This posed an ethical dilemma as data falsification is
against the code of ethics. In addition, it is a criminal offense to falsify any records, whether
personal or organizational.

HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT 3
Question 2
Ethical dilemmas are prevalent in the healthcare organization. They arise from the moral
complexity of society. When such ethical concerns occur, it is important to review the
professional codes of conduct in order to make the right decision. The codes of conduct help the
clinical engineer make a decision that is morally and culturally allowed while still maintaining
their excellence in the field of healthcare delivery.
There several professional codes of conduct applicable in the healthcare organization. They were
developed by IEEE in 2015. These codes describe the moral standards that clinical engineers
should have while conducting their professional duties. The code of conduct is imperative
because it helps the clinical engineer focus on their responsibilities. It also motivates them to
exercise their professional goals and achieve various milestones in the field. The codes remind
clinical engineers on what it means to pursue a profession that is committing to promoting the
health and the welfare of the community.
The American College of Clinical Engineering produced a code of ethics that is specially
intended for clinical engineers. The codes state that clinical engineers should prioritize the
health, welfare, and safety of the community. They should also improve the efficacy of the
healthcare delivery system by applying relevant technology. Clinical engineers are required to
support the safety and effectiveness of healthcare through exchanging and sharing of skills,
experiences, and information with other members in the field. This code of conducts also dictates
that clinical engineers should manage the resources and the technology at the healthcare
organization responsibly.
The patient confidentiality, proprietary employer information, and client information should be
maintained unless the information is at risk of endangering the public or violates a legal statute.