AK Ethics, Safety & Professional Practice 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which scenario represents a dual relationship that an AK practitioner should avoid?
- Treating a patient referred by another healthcare provider
- Entering into a business partnership with a current patient (Correct answer)
- Accepting payment through insurance billing
- Providing care to a patient of a different cultural background
Correct answer: Entering into a business partnership with a current patient
Business partnerships with current patients create dual relationships that can compromise professional objectivity and patient welfare.
Question 2: A patient with a pacemaker requests an Applied Kinesiology evaluation. The practitioner should:
- Proceed with all standard AK techniques including electrical stimulation modalities
- Screen for pacemaker-incompatible procedures and avoid contraindicated techniques (Correct answer)
- Decline to treat the patient entirely due to liability concerns
- Perform muscle testing only on the lower extremities
Correct answer: Screen for pacemaker-incompatible procedures and avoid contraindicated techniques
Practitioners must screen for contraindications like pacemakers and modify or omit techniques that pose risk.
Question 3: Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), how long must AK practitioners in a covered entity typically retain adult patient records?
- 1 year after the last patient encounter
- 6 years from the date of creation or last use (Correct answer)
- 30 days after treatment concludes
- Indefinitely with no option to destroy records
Correct answer: 6 years from the date of creation or last use
HIPAA requires covered entities to retain documentation of their privacy policies and procedures for six years.
Question 4: What ethical obligation does an AK practitioner have when they are aware that a colleague is practicing outside their scope of competence?
- Ignore the situation to maintain professional collegiality
- Report concerns to the appropriate licensing board or professional organization (Correct answer)
- Warn patients verbally about the colleague's inadequacies
- Compete for the colleague's patients to protect them
Correct answer: Report concerns to the appropriate licensing board or professional organization
Reporting incompetent practice to licensing authorities upholds public safety and professional standards.
Question 5: An AK practitioner suspects a patient is experiencing domestic violence. Which action is most ethically appropriate?
- Confront the suspected abuser directly
- Document observations, provide safety resources, and follow mandatory reporting laws if applicable (Correct answer)
- Avoid documentation to protect the patient's privacy from potential misuse
- Refer the patient to mental health services only
Correct answer: Document observations, provide safety resources, and follow mandatory reporting laws if applicable
Ethical care involves documentation, offering safety resources, and complying with applicable mandatory reporting requirements.
Question 6: Which statement about the use of social media by AK practitioners is MOST consistent with professional ethics?
- Posting patient testimonials with first name and treatment details to attract clients
- Sharing general wellness content while never disclosing patient information (Correct answer)
- Friending patients on personal social media to build rapport
- Using patient before-and-after photos without written consent
Correct answer: Sharing general wellness content while never disclosing patient information
Sharing general health information without disclosing any patient data is the ethical approach to professional social media use.
Question 7: A patient in financial hardship requests reduced fees. The most ethical response is to:
- Refuse reduced fees to avoid setting a precedent with other patients
- Consider a sliding scale or payment plan while maintaining the therapeutic relationship (Correct answer)
- Provide free care indefinitely regardless of the practice's financial viability
- Discharge the patient if they cannot pay standard fees
Correct answer: Consider a sliding scale or payment plan while maintaining the therapeutic relationship
Offering sliding scales or payment plans balances ethical access to care with the practitioner's financial sustainability.
AK Ethics, Safety & Professional Practice 3
Which scenario represents a dual relationship that an AK practitioner should avoid?