Ethical & Legal Issues Flashcards
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Read the first 7 Ethical & Legal Issues flashcards as text
Which document specifically outlines a person's wishes regarding life-sustaining treatment and is legally recognized in most US states?
Answer: Living will
A living will is a legal document in which a person specifies their wishes regarding life-sustaining treatment in advance.
The concept of 'substituted judgment' in surrogate decision-making requires the surrogate to:
Answer: Make the decision the person would have made based on their known values and wishes
Substituted judgment requires the surrogate to replicate the decision the incapacitated person would have made, not what the surrogate prefers.
A nursing assistant overhears a colleague mocking a resident with Alzheimer's. What is the ethical and legal obligation of the witness?
Answer: Report the incident to a supervisor as potential psychological abuse
Witnessing psychological abuse or neglect creates a mandatory obligation to report the incident to a supervisor and potentially adult protective services.
Under the Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA), healthcare facilities receiving Medicare or Medicaid funding must:
Answer: Inform patients of their right to make advance directives and document their status
The PSDA requires covered facilities to inform patients of their right to create advance directives and to document whether one exists.
A family requests that a person with end-stage Alzheimer's receive CPR despite a documented DNR order. The ethical response is to:
Answer: Explain the DNR reflects the patient's own documented wishes and uphold it
A validly executed DNR reflects the patient's own wishes and should be honored even when family disagrees, absent a legal basis to override it.
Which ethical principle is MOST at stake when a care facility uses deceptive tactics — such as disguising medications in food — without the resident's knowledge?
Answer: Autonomy
Covert medication administration undermines autonomy by denying the person the knowledge and choice to accept or refuse treatment.
A person with early Alzheimer's wants to update their will. What is the legal standard they must meet?
Answer: Testamentary capacity: knowing their assets, natural heirs, and the nature of the will
Testamentary capacity requires the person to understand the nature of the document, their assets, their heirs, and how the will distributes those assets.