Professional Standards and Ethics Flashcards
7 cards from real ABFM practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Professional Standards and Ethics flashcards as text
A patient refuses a blood transfusion based on religious beliefs despite a life-threatening hemorrhage. The physician should:
Answer: Respect the competent adult's refusal and document thoroughly
Competent adults have the absolute right to refuse any medical treatment, including life-saving interventions, for any reason including religious beliefs.
Which of the following is NOT a component of a valid advance directive?
Answer: A physician's countersignature
Advance directives are legal documents requiring patient signature and witnesses/notarization per state law, but a physician countersignature is generally not required for validity.
A patient discloses plans to seriously harm a specific, identifiable third party. Under the Tarasoff duty, the physician must:
Answer: Warn the identifiable potential victim and notify law enforcement
The Tarasoff ruling established that therapists and physicians have a duty to protect identifiable potential victims by warning them and notifying authorities.
A physician in a small town is asked to provide care for a close personal friend. The most appropriate approach is to:
Answer: Provide emergency care only and facilitate transfer to another physician for ongoing care
Personal relationships with patients compromise objectivity; physicians should provide emergency care when necessary but arrange for an independent provider for ongoing care.
When a patient lacks decision-making capacity and has no advance directive, the standard hierarchy for surrogate decision-making in most US states begins with:
Answer: The spouse or domestic partner
In most US states, the legal default surrogate hierarchy begins with the spouse or domestic partner as the first-tier decision-maker.
A patient asks their physician to falsify a disability form to obtain benefits the physician does not believe are medically warranted. The physician should:
Answer: Refuse and explain that falsifying documents is fraudulent and unethical
Falsifying medical documents constitutes fraud; physicians must decline and explain the ethical and legal implications to the patient.
The 'substituted judgment' standard for surrogate decision-making requires the surrogate to:
Answer: Make the decision the patient would have made based on known values and preferences
Substituted judgment requires the surrogate to replicate the patient's own decision based on previously expressed values, not what the surrogate believes is best.