CHT Medical Ethics & Patient Rights 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A hyperbaric patient discloses active suicidal ideation during a treatment session. What is the technician's immediate ethical and legal obligation?
- Keep it confidential to preserve the therapeutic relationship
- Finish the session and then document it in the chart
- Immediately notify the supervising clinician and follow safety protocols (Correct answer)
- Advise the patient to call a hotline after their session
Correct answer: Immediately notify the supervising clinician and follow safety protocols
Imminent risk of self-harm is a recognized exception to confidentiality; the technician must immediately alert clinical staff and follow safety protocols.
Question 2: Which document specifically authorizes another person to make healthcare decisions on behalf of a patient who becomes incapacitated?
- Living will
- POLST form
- Durable power of attorney for healthcare (Correct answer)
- DNR order
Correct answer: Durable power of attorney for healthcare
A durable power of attorney for healthcare designates a surrogate decision-maker if the patient loses decision-making capacity.
Question 3: During hyperbaric treatment, a technician notices signs of patient distress but the attending physician is unavailable. What is the ethically and professionally correct action?
- Continue the treatment and chart the observation afterward
- Immediately terminate the session and seek emergency assistance (Correct answer)
- Wait for the next scheduled check-in to report
- Ask another patient in the chamber for advice
Correct answer: Immediately terminate the session and seek emergency assistance
Patient safety takes precedence; the technician must abort the session and activate emergency protocols when clinical distress is observed.
Question 4: A hyperbaric technician is asked by a pharmaceutical company representative to record which patients are receiving experimental treatments. What should the technician do?
- Provide a de-identified list to stay compliant
- Share the list since it is for research purposes
- Decline and report the request to the compliance officer (Correct answer)
- Ask the patients informally if they mind
Correct answer: Decline and report the request to the compliance officer
Sharing patient information with commercial entities without proper consent and IRB oversight violates HIPAA and research ethics; this must be reported.
Question 5: The ethical concept of 'justice' in healthcare most directly requires that hyperbaric technicians:
- Always agree with the physician's treatment plan
- Provide equal quality of care regardless of a patient's background or insurance status (Correct answer)
- Prioritize patients who can pay out-of-pocket
- Follow whatever the patient requests without clinical judgment
Correct answer: Provide equal quality of care regardless of a patient's background or insurance status
Justice in healthcare ethics requires fair and equitable treatment for all patients without discrimination based on socioeconomic or demographic factors.
Question 6: A patient's family member insists on knowing the patient's HBO treatment schedule and diagnosis. The patient has not signed a HIPAA authorization. What should the technician do?
- Share the schedule since family members are trusted
- Provide general information but withhold the diagnosis
- Decline to share any protected health information without patient authorization (Correct answer)
- Transfer the question to the billing department
Correct answer: Decline to share any protected health information without patient authorization
Without a signed HIPAA authorization or documented permission from the patient, protected health information cannot be disclosed to family members.
Question 7: Which scenario represents a breach of professional boundaries by a hyperbaric technician?
- Explaining the treatment procedure in simple terms
- Accepting a small gift of gratitude from a patient's family
- Entering a personal financial arrangement with a current patient (Correct answer)
- Documenting a patient's complaints about pain levels
Correct answer: Entering a personal financial arrangement with a current patient
Personal financial arrangements with current patients constitute a serious boundary violation that compromises professional integrity and the therapeutic relationship.
CHT Medical Ethics & Patient Rights 3
A hyperbaric patient discloses active suicidal ideation during a treatment session.
What is the technician's immediate ethical and legal obligation?