Ethical & Legal Issues Flashcards

An ethics committee is convened when a care team cannot agree on whether to withdraw a feeding tube from a person with advanced Alzheimer's. What is the committee's primary role?

Answer: To provide guidance, mediation, and ethical analysis to support decision-making

Ethics committees offer advisory guidance, mediation, and analysis; the legal decision-making authority remains with the appropriate surrogate or provider.

Which scenario represents a conflict of interest for a healthcare proxy of a person with Alzheimer's?

Answer: Standing to inherit a large estate and making decisions that hasten death

A proxy who stands to benefit financially from the person's death has a direct conflict of interest that could compromise their decision-making integrity.

Which federal law prohibits discrimination against individuals with Alzheimer's disease in employment settings?

Answer: The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA prohibits workplace discrimination based on disability, which includes Alzheimer's disease when it substantially limits a major life activity.

What distinguishes a POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment) from a living will?

Answer: A POLST is a signed medical order immediately actionable by EMS; a living will is a directive requiring interpretation

A POLST is an actual medical order that emergency responders can act on immediately, whereas a living will is an instructional directive that must be interpreted and translated into orders.

A care provider learns that a family member is secretly recording conversations with the person who has Alzheimer's without informing the care staff. What concern does this raise?

Answer: Privacy and consent concerns, as recording laws and facility policies govern this practice

Covert recording in care settings raises privacy concerns and may violate state wiretapping laws and facility policies that regulate recording.

Which principle guides the decision to pursue comfort-focused care rather than curative treatment in late-stage Alzheimer's?

Answer: The best-interest standard combined with non-maleficence

When curative treatment offers no benefit and causes suffering, the best-interest standard and non-maleficence together support a shift to comfort-focused care.

A person with Alzheimer's repeatedly attempts to leave a secured memory care unit. Staff can use which least-restrictive intervention before considering physical or chemical restraints?

Answer: Environmental modifications and redirection techniques

Least-restrictive care requires attempting environmental modifications and behavioral redirection before considering chemical or physical restraint options.