Professional Ethics & Standards Flashcards

A gerontological professional who continues to practice in an area where their competence has lapsed is violating which ethical standard?

Answer: Scope of competence

Practicing beyond the boundaries of current competence violates the professional duty to provide services only within areas of demonstrated knowledge and skill.

In the context of the BCG credential, cultural humility in gerontological practice PRIMARILY means:

Answer: Maintaining an ongoing self-reflective stance and openness to clients' cultural identities and values

Cultural humility emphasizes lifelong learning, self-reflection, and client-centered partnership rather than mastery of fixed cultural facts.

An older adult with full decision-making capacity requests that her estranged adult children not be informed of her hospitalization. The care team should:

Answer: Honor the patient's request under HIPAA privacy protections

HIPAA allows competent patients to restrict disclosure of their health information, and the team must honor that restriction.

The 'best interest' standard in surrogate decision-making is MOST appropriately used when:

Answer: No prior expressed wishes or values of the patient are known

The best interest standard is applied as a last resort when substituted judgment is impossible because the patient's prior wishes are unknown.

A newly hired gerontological case manager is asked to falsify a client's functional assessment to qualify for additional services. The ethical response is to:

Answer: Refuse and report the request through appropriate channels

Falsifying records is both an ethical violation and potentially fraudulent; refusal and reporting are required by professional standards.

Which of the following BEST describes the ethical principle of 'nonmaleficence' in gerontological care?

Answer: Avoiding actions that cause unnecessary harm to the client

Nonmaleficence—'first, do no harm'—obligates professionals to avoid interventions whose risks outweigh their benefits.

A gerontological professional provides a client's medical information to a researcher without obtaining the client's authorization. Under HIPAA, this disclosure is permissible only if:

Answer: A waiver or alteration of authorization has been approved by an IRB or Privacy Board

HIPAA permits research disclosures of PHI without patient authorization only with a valid IRB or Privacy Board waiver meeting specific criteria.