KAPS Professional Ethics and Standards 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following best describes the principle of 'veracity' in pharmacy ethics?
- Treating all patients with equal concern regardless of background
- Providing truthful and accurate information to patients and colleagues (Correct answer)
- Refraining from actions that cause harm to patients
- Acting in the best interest of the patient at all times
Correct answer: Providing truthful and accurate information to patients and colleagues
Veracity is the duty to be truthful and honest in all professional communications, including patient counseling and documentation.
Question 2: A pharmacist fills a prescription correctly but later realizes the drug has a known interaction with a medication the patient is already taking. At the point of discovery, the pharmacist should:
- Document the error and wait for the next refill to address it
- Contact the patient and prescriber immediately to address the potential interaction (Correct answer)
- Assume the prescriber was aware of the interaction and take no action
- Notify the pharmacist's insurance carrier before contacting the patient
Correct answer: Contact the patient and prescriber immediately to address the potential interaction
Ethical and professional standards require pharmacists to act promptly to prevent harm when a clinically significant interaction is identified, regardless of when it is discovered.
Question 3: Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a pharmacy is required to:
- Provide free medications to patients with disabilities
- Make reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access to pharmacy services (Correct answer)
- Hire a fixed percentage of employees with disabilities
- Exempt disabled patients from copay requirements
Correct answer: Make reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access to pharmacy services
The ADA mandates that pharmacies, as places of public accommodation, provide reasonable accommodations so patients with disabilities can access services equally.
Question 4: A pharmacist who disagrees with a physician's therapeutic choice for a patient should:
- Refuse to fill the prescription and document the refusal in the patient's profile
- Consult with the physician professionally and present evidence-based alternatives (Correct answer)
- Override the prescription based on their clinical judgment
- Fill the prescription without comment to preserve the physician-patient relationship
Correct answer: Consult with the physician professionally and present evidence-based alternatives
Pharmacists have a professional duty to communicate therapeutic concerns to prescribers collaboratively while respecting the prescriber's clinical authority.
Question 5: The pharmacy profession's Code of Ethics is BEST described as:
- A legally binding document that supersedes state pharmacy practice acts
- A set of aspirational standards that guide professional behavior and decision-making (Correct answer)
- A list of actions that result in automatic license revocation
- A government-mandated framework developed by the FDA
Correct answer: A set of aspirational standards that guide professional behavior and decision-making
The Code of Ethics is an aspirational, non-legally-binding document developed by the profession to articulate shared values and guide ethical practice.
Question 6: When a pharmacist compounds a medication that results in patient harm due to poor sterility technique, the ethical framework most violated is:
- Justice
- Autonomy
- Nonmaleficence (Correct answer)
- Veracity
Correct answer: Nonmaleficence
Nonmaleficence — the duty to 'do no harm' — is the primary principle violated when a pharmacist's negligent practice causes direct patient injury.
Question 7: A patient requests that their prescription information not be shared with other healthcare providers. How should the pharmacist respond ethically?
- Comply fully, as patient confidentiality is absolute
- Respect the request while explaining situations where disclosure may be legally required (Correct answer)
- Override the request if the pharmacist believes sharing information is clinically important
- Document the request but share information freely among the care team anyway
Correct answer: Respect the request while explaining situations where disclosure may be legally required
Pharmacists must respect patient confidentiality preferences while transparently explaining legal exceptions, such as mandatory reporting or coordination of care under HIPAA.
KAPS Professional Ethics and Standards 3
Which of the following best describes the principle of 'veracity' in pharmacy ethics?