FREE NDEB Professionalism and Ethics Questions and Answers

Question 1

A dentist presents a single, high-cost treatment plan involving implants to a patient for multiple missing teeth.
The dentist fails to discuss or present a functionally viable, less expensive alternative, such as a removable partial denture.
Which primary ethical principle is most directly violated by this omission?

Accepted Answer

Autonomy

Answer

Justice

Answer

Beneficence

Answer

Non-maleficence

Question 2

A patient's adult child calls the dental office requesting specific details about their parent's recent restorative treatment for a school project. The patient has not provided any consent for this disclosure. According to Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), what is the most appropriate response?

Accepted Answer

Explain that without the patient's express written consent, no health information can be released.

Answer

Provide general information about the procedure but omit the patient's name.

Answer

Ask the child to describe the project to determine if sharing is justified.

Answer

Provide the information, as it is for a harmless educational purpose.

Question 3

During an endodontic procedure, a dentist fractures a small file tip in the apical third of a root canal. The dentist successfully seals the canal, and the prognosis is considered good. Which of the following actions best demonstrates the ethical principle of veracity?

Accepted Answer

Informing the patient of the incident, discussing the potential prognosis, and documenting the conversation in the chart.

Answer

Monitoring the tooth at recall appointments without informing the patient to avoid causing unnecessary anxiety.

Answer

Referring the patient to an endodontist for follow-up without explaining the specific reason for the referral.

Answer

Documenting the event in the chart but only informing the patient if symptoms develop in the future.

Question 4

A dentist has a significant financial ownership stake in a specific dental implant manufacturing company. The dentist's treatment recommendations consistently and exclusively favor this company's products, even in clinical situations where alternatives might be more suitable. This situation primarily creates a conflict between the dentist's professional duties and their:

Accepted Answer

Personal financial interests

Answer

Obligation to the regulatory authority

Answer

Continuing education requirements

Answer

Relationship with dental colleagues

Question 5

A new dentist acquires a practice and, upon reviewing patient records, discovers a pattern of substandard treatment and fraudulent billing by the previous owner that has caused harm to patients. What is the new dentist's primary ethical obligation?

Accepted Answer

To inform the affected patients of the findings and report the previous dentist to the provincial dental regulatory authority.

Answer

To contact the previous dentist directly to demand an explanation before taking any other steps.

Answer

To correct the faulty work at no charge to the patients to protect the practice's reputation.

Answer

To ignore the past issues and focus solely on providing excellent care from this point forward.

Question 6

Which of the following scenarios constitutes a dual relationship that would be considered professional misconduct by most Canadian dental regulatory bodies?

Accepted Answer

Entering into a romantic relationship with a current patient of the practice.

Answer

Providing dental treatment to a colleague from a different dental office.

Answer

Treating a high school acquaintance who you have not seen in over 10 years.

Answer

Bartering dental services for professional accounting services with a patient who is a CPA.