PCE Ethics and Professionalism 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A physiotherapist discovers that a colleague is regularly practicing while impaired by alcohol. What is the most appropriate first action?
- Report immediately to the police
- Confront the colleague privately and document the concern (Correct answer)
- Ignore it unless a patient complaint is filed
- Inform patients so they can choose a different therapist
Correct answer: Confront the colleague privately and document the concern
The first step is to address the concern directly with the colleague and document it; if the behavior continues, escalation to the regulatory body is required.
Question 2: A patient refuses a recommended treatment. After thorough education, the patient still declines. The physiotherapist should:
- Proceed with treatment anyway to prevent harm
- Document the refusal and respect the patient's decision (Correct answer)
- Discharge the patient immediately
- Contact the patient's family to override the decision
Correct answer: Document the refusal and respect the patient's decision
Competent adults have the right to refuse treatment; the therapist must document the refusal and continue to provide available alternatives.
Question 3: Which scenario BEST exemplifies the ethical principle of justice in physiotherapy practice?
- Providing extra sessions to patients who pay more
- Allocating treatment resources equitably regardless of socioeconomic status (Correct answer)
- Treating all patients with the same intervention regardless of diagnosis
- Prioritizing patients who are most likely to recover fully
Correct answer: Allocating treatment resources equitably regardless of socioeconomic status
Justice requires fair distribution of care and resources without discrimination based on socioeconomic or personal factors.
Question 4: A physiotherapist is asked by an employer to reduce treatment duration for all patients to increase clinic revenue. The ethical response is to:
- Comply to maintain employment
- Reduce duration only for patients with good prognosis
- Advocate for evidence-based treatment duration and report if patient safety is compromised (Correct answer)
- Secretly extend sessions without documenting them
Correct answer: Advocate for evidence-based treatment duration and report if patient safety is compromised
Physiotherapists must advocate for patient welfare and report practices that compromise evidence-based, safe care.
Question 5: A patient shares information about illegal drug use during a session. This information is:
- Always reportable to law enforcement
- Confidential unless it poses an imminent risk of harm to the patient or others (Correct answer)
- Required to be shared with other treating clinicians immediately
- Grounds for immediate discharge from physiotherapy
Correct answer: Confidential unless it poses an imminent risk of harm to the patient or others
Confidentiality applies unless disclosure is required by law or there is an imminent safety threat.
Question 6: When a physiotherapist is unsure whether a specific intervention is within their scope of practice, the BEST action is to:
- Proceed if they have seen it done before
- Refuse all interventions outside their primary training
- Consult regulatory guidelines and seek supervision or further training as needed (Correct answer)
- Delegate the task to a physiotherapy assistant
Correct answer: Consult regulatory guidelines and seek supervision or further training as needed
Practitioners must verify scope through regulatory standards and pursue appropriate education before performing unfamiliar interventions.
Question 7: A physiotherapist develops romantic feelings for a current patient. The most ethical course of action is to:
- Pursue the relationship discreetly after hours
- Transfer care to a colleague and never see the patient again
- Transfer care to another therapist and recognize the therapeutic relationship must end first (Correct answer)
- Disclose feelings to the patient to maintain honesty
Correct answer: Transfer care to another therapist and recognize the therapeutic relationship must end first
Sexual or romantic relationships with current patients are prohibited; care must be transferred before any personal relationship could ethically be considered.
PCE Ethics and Professionalism 2
A physiotherapist discovers that a colleague is regularly practicing while impaired by alcohol.
What is the most appropriate first action?