Ethical Issues in Healthcare: HA570 Unit 4 Confidentiality Assignment

This assignment addresses ethical issues in healthcare, particularly focusing on confidentiality and its implications within the context of healthcare administration. It examines a case study involving communication challenges and privacy concerns, such as the case of Beth Tottle and Mrs. Uwilla, highlighting the importance of patient-centered approaches and the complexities of ethical decision-making. The solution explores the ethical significance of communication, the impact of information gaps, and the application of ethical theories and approaches in resolving moral distress. The assignment also considers national regulations regarding confidentiality, privacy, and informed consent, emphasizing the need for healthcare leaders to understand and navigate these complexities. The conclusion underscores the importance of managing health information effectively to enable informed decisions about patient care, while preserving patient privacy and confidentiality.

Health Information

Introduction
 Ethical issues in healthcare and health facilities are crucial.
 Everyday patience, doctors , nurses, families and other health
professionals must face legal and ethical decisions to make.
 The difficult dilemmas and challenges they face range from concerns
of medical treatments, hospital management, practices and other
fundamental subjects that are in the healthcare industry (Mazar, &
Patel, 2015).

Health Information
 When managed effectively and efficiently, the information helps the
medical care givers to make informed decisions about patient care.
 However, it should be noted that managing health information
properly poses a lot of ethical challenges.

Privacy concerns
 There is a lot of privacy concerns as medical records and other
relevant information in a healthcare facility may contain personal
information such as health conditions, sexuality history, and
psychiatric diagnosis and substance abuse issues.
 These issues could be embarrassing if they are released to
unauthorized users.
 The decisions on storage procedures and access control should be
confidential and have sensitivity considerations.
 There should be ethical need to preserve the confidentiality and
privacy of a patient.

Beth Tottle and Mrs Uwilla and
Family
 In the case of Beth Tottle and Mrs. Uwilla and her family, the ethical
issues lies on communication and how the teams communication
have impacted the relationship between with the Uwilla family.
 Beth uses the ethical significance of a patient centered approach in
communication.
 The distress morally is centered in the relationship between her and
the Uwilla family.

Cont…
 Much of the approach in traditional healthcare and ethical problems
will greatly rely on the understanding of the various roles and
responsibilities in communication.
 After Beth has gathered and identified the facts and the type of
ethical problem of moral distress associated with the Uwillas, she
must make her ethical decision (Wager, Lee, & Glaser, 2017).

Use of ethical theories/ approaches
 The moral distress ethical issue has led to a developing relationship
between Beth and the Uwilla family in a complex situation.
 There is an information gap between Uwilla and the team.
 Beth is trying to fulfill her professional loyalty in a manner that is
likely to benefit the patient as well as the colleagues.
 Mrs. Uwilla is not a U.S citizen and therefore she cannot qualify the
rehabilitative care given to others.
 Bet and others will have to make decisions whether to give Mrs.
Uwilla free care or refer her to other hospitals outside.

Cont…
 The value call attention at affordable based transfer is sometimes
implemented in the hospital and this allows a patient to have medical
treatment at affordable fees.
 This will show that Mrs. Uwilla cannot have the same treatment since
she is not a citizen.
 The approach will take a compassionate option than a repatriation
option to return her to her country of origin.

Evaluation of Outcome
 Beth has carried out her professional responsibility.
 She may ask the health institution to teach the caregivers on
communication or improvement of cross-cultural and to a larger
extent the value based communication.
 These issues could be embarrassing if they are released to
unauthorized users. The decisions on storage procedures and access
control should be confidential and have sensitivity considerations.

Conclusion
 When managed effectively and efficiently, the information helps the
medical care givers to make informed decisions about patient care.

 Mazar, S., & Patel, A. (2015). U.S. Patent Application No. 14/681,333.
 Wager, K. A., Lee, F. W., & Glaser, J. P. (2017). Health care information
systems: a practical approach for health care management. John
Wiley & Sons.