Professional Standards & Ethics Flashcards
7 cards from real ECC 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 & Ethics flashcards as text
A POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment) form differs from a standard DNR order because it:
Answer: Is a physician's order actionable across care settings without requiring new orders
A POLST is a medical order that follows the patient across care settings and is immediately actionable by EMS and other providers.
During a multicultural resuscitation, a patient's family refuses blood products on religious grounds. The patient had previously expressed no objection. The provider should:
Answer: Administer blood products based on the patient's previously expressed wishes
The patient's own previously expressed wishes take precedence over family religious objections when those two conflict.
Which resuscitation scenario most clearly raises a 'futility' concern?
Answer: A patient with metastatic cancer, multi-organ failure, and no response after 45 minutes of ACLS
Prolonged ACLS without ROSC in a patient with terminal illness and multi-organ failure meets most clinical definitions of medical futility.
What term describes the ethical obligation of ECC providers to keep promises and follow through on commitments to patients and teams?
Answer: Fidelity
Fidelity refers to the duty to keep commitments and maintain trust, including following through on care plans communicated to patients and families.
A resuscitation team leader who never solicits input from other team members and dismisses suggestions violates which professional standard?
Answer: Effective team dynamics and closed-loop communication
Effective team dynamics require the leader to solicit and value input from all team members, as errors are more likely to be caught in collaborative environments.
When terminating resuscitation in the field, EMS providers are typically required to:
Answer: Contact medical direction or follow a protocol approved by physician medical oversight
Field termination of resuscitation requires authorization from online medical direction or compliance with offline protocols developed with physician oversight.
A nurse refuses to participate in a resuscitation due to a sincere conscientious objection. The most ethical institutional response is to:
Answer: Accommodate the objection by assigning another provider, ensuring patient care is uninterrupted
Institutions should accommodate conscientious objections when doing so does not compromise patient care by ensuring another qualified provider is available.