EEG Patient Safety and Ethics 4

Question 1

A patient with a known latex allergy is scheduled for a routine EEG. Which action is most appropriate?

Accepted Answer

Use latex-free electrodes and collodion, and notify the entire team of the allergy

Answer

Proceed normally since EEG electrodes do not contain latex

Answer

Cancel the EEG and reschedule after allergy testing

Answer

Apply standard electrodes but monitor closely for skin reactions

Question 2

During an ambulatory EEG, a patient calls to report they removed the electrodes themselves because of discomfort. What is the technologist's primary ethical obligation?

Accepted Answer

Respect patient autonomy, document the removal, and notify the ordering physician

Answer

Document the incident and attempt to retrieve the equipment

Answer

Report the patient to the billing department for equipment misuse

Answer

Immediately dispatch a technologist to reapply electrodes without discussing with the patient

Question 3

A technologist notices a patient's oxygen saturation dropping to 88% during a sleep-deprived EEG. What is the correct response?

Accepted Answer

Pause the recording, stimulate the patient, apply supplemental oxygen if available, and notify the supervising physician

Answer

Continue the study to obtain a full baseline

Answer

Note the saturation in the record and continue without interruption

Answer

Immediately terminate the EEG and discharge the patient

Question 4

Which principle of biomedical ethics requires the EEG technologist to provide adequate information before obtaining consent for photic stimulation?

Accepted Answer

Autonomy

Answer

Justice

Answer

Non-maleficence

Answer

Beneficence

Question 5

An EEG technologist discovers that a colleague has been omitting seizure events from written reports to speed up throughput. What is the most appropriate course of action?

Accepted Answer

Report the concern through the facility's established chain of command or compliance channel

Answer

Ignore it since the interpreting physician will catch any errors

Answer

Confront the colleague privately and ask them to stop

Answer

Begin correcting the colleague's reports without disclosure

Question 6

A parent refuses to sign consent for their 8-year-old child's medically necessary EEG. Which step should the technologist take first?

Accepted Answer

Notify the ordering physician so that the clinical team can address the refusal and explore alternatives

Answer

Perform the EEG anyway because the child's welfare supersedes parental refusal

Answer

Immediately seek a court order to override the parent

Answer

Document the refusal and reschedule without further action

Question 7

Which practice best protects patient confidentiality when transmitting an EEG recording electronically to an interpreting neurologist at another facility?

Accepted Answer

Use a HIPAA-compliant encrypted platform with patient identifiers limited to the minimum necessary

Answer

Send via standard email with the patient's name in the subject line for easy identification

Answer

Attach the file to a shared public cloud folder for easy access

Answer

Print the record and fax it to the neurologist's personal fax number