IHSA Ethics & Professional Standards 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A certified coach discovers that a colleague is falsifying safety inspection records at a job site. What is the coach's ethical obligation?
- Ignore it to avoid workplace conflict
- Report the falsification to the appropriate authority or supervisor (Correct answer)
- Confront the colleague privately and take no further action
- Wait to see if the colleague self-corrects
Correct answer: Report the falsification to the appropriate authority or supervisor
IHSA professional standards require coaches to report safety violations and misconduct to protect workers and uphold the integrity of the profession.
Question 2: Which principle best describes the concept of 'duty of care' as it applies to an IHSA Certified Coach?
- Ensuring participants pay all required fees on time
- Taking reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm to those under your guidance (Correct answer)
- Documenting every interaction for legal protection
- Following only the minimum regulatory requirements
Correct answer: Taking reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm to those under your guidance
Duty of care requires coaches to take reasonable precautions to protect participants from foreseeable harm in the workplace safety context.
Question 3: An IHSA coach is offered a financial incentive by a safety equipment vendor to recommend their products exclusively. What is the appropriate response?
- Accept the incentive as long as the products are of good quality
- Decline the incentive and disclose the offer to maintain objectivity (Correct answer)
- Accept quietly without disclosure since it benefits participants
- Refer the vendor to the organization's purchasing department
Correct answer: Decline the incentive and disclose the offer to maintain objectivity
Accepting undisclosed financial incentives creates a conflict of interest that compromises the coach's professional objectivity and credibility.
Question 4: When documenting a coaching session involving a workplace near-miss incident, which standard should guide the coach's record-keeping?
- Record only the positive outcomes to encourage future participation
- Document facts accurately, objectively, and in a timely manner (Correct answer)
- Minimize detail to avoid creating legal liability
- Share records widely so all staff are informed
Correct answer: Document facts accurately, objectively, and in a timely manner
Accurate, objective, and timely documentation upholds professional integrity and ensures records are reliable for safety improvement and legal compliance.
Question 5: A coach is asked by management to pressure workers into signing off on safety training they did not actually complete. The coach should:
- Comply since management authority supersedes professional ethics
- Refuse and explain that falsifying records violates professional and legal standards (Correct answer)
- Partially comply by documenting partial completion as full
- Ask workers to complete a shortened version and sign off
Correct answer: Refuse and explain that falsifying records violates professional and legal standards
Falsifying training completion records violates both IHSA ethical standards and legal requirements, and no management directive overrides these obligations.
Question 6: Which of the following best defines 'informed consent' in the context of IHSA coaching activities?
- Participants verbally agree to attend a session
- Participants understand the purpose, risks, and their right to withdraw before agreeing to participate (Correct answer)
- Management approves the coaching program on behalf of workers
- Workers sign a standard liability waiver
Correct answer: Participants understand the purpose, risks, and their right to withdraw before agreeing to participate
Informed consent requires that participants receive full information about the activity, understand it, and voluntarily agree to participate.
Question 7: An IHSA Certified Coach is working with a team that includes workers from diverse cultural backgrounds. Ethical practice requires the coach to:
- Apply identical methods to all workers regardless of background
- Adapt communication and coaching approaches to be culturally sensitive and inclusive (Correct answer)
- Focus training only on workers who are fluent in English
- Separate workers by cultural background for efficiency
Correct answer: Adapt communication and coaching approaches to be culturally sensitive and inclusive
Ethical coaching requires cultural competency and adapting methods to ensure all workers receive equitable, effective safety education.
IHSA Ethics & Professional Standards 2
A certified coach discovers that a colleague is falsifying safety inspection records at a job site.
What is the coach's ethical obligation?