PCE Ethics and Professionalism 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A physiotherapist is treating a minor patient. Who provides informed consent for treatment?
- The minor patient alone if over age 12
- The parent or legal guardian, with the minor's assent when appropriate (Correct answer)
- The referring physician
- The school or institution if the minor is enrolled there
Correct answer: The parent or legal guardian, with the minor's assent when appropriate
Legal consent for minors is provided by a parent or guardian, though practitioners should seek the child's assent when developmentally appropriate.
Question 2: Which behavior represents a violation of professional boundaries in physiotherapy?
- Using a patient's first name with their permission
- Accepting a small token of appreciation such as homemade cookies
- Borrowing money from a patient (Correct answer)
- Discussing treatment goals with a patient's caregiver
Correct answer: Borrowing money from a patient
Financial transactions such as borrowing money from patients constitute a serious professional boundary violation.
Question 3: The concept of 'veracity' in healthcare ethics requires physiotherapists to:
- Provide care consistent with the best available evidence
- Be truthful with patients about diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment options (Correct answer)
- Verify all patient-reported information before proceeding
- Document accurately in the medical record
Correct answer: Be truthful with patients about diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment options
Veracity refers to the duty to tell the truth and communicate honestly with patients.
Question 4: A physiotherapist receives a request from a lawyer for a patient's medical records related to a lawsuit. The correct action is to:
- Release the records immediately as requested
- Refuse all legal requests to protect confidentiality
- Release records only with a valid patient authorization or court order (Correct answer)
- Contact the patient's physician before responding
Correct answer: Release records only with a valid patient authorization or court order
Records may only be disclosed with written patient consent or a valid legal order such as a subpoena.
Question 5: A physiotherapist disagrees with a physician's referral order that they believe is medically unnecessary. The best action is to:
- Follow the order without question to avoid conflict
- Refuse treatment and discharge the patient
- Conduct an independent assessment and communicate clinical findings to the physician (Correct answer)
- Perform the treatment while noting disagreement in a personal log
Correct answer: Conduct an independent assessment and communicate clinical findings to the physician
Physiotherapists have professional autonomy to assess patients independently and communicate findings collaboratively with referring providers.
Question 6: Which of the following BEST describes the ethical concept of 'non-maleficence' in physiotherapy?
- Providing the greatest benefit to the greatest number of patients
- Acting in a way that does not intentionally cause harm to the patient (Correct answer)
- Respecting the patient's right to make their own decisions
- Distributing healthcare resources fairly
Correct answer: Acting in a way that does not intentionally cause harm to the patient
Non-maleficence is the duty to avoid causing harm, including through negligent acts or omissions.
Question 7: A physiotherapist working in a sports setting is pressured by a coach to return an athlete to play before full recovery. The therapist should:
- Return the athlete to maintain the professional relationship with the coaching staff
- Defer entirely to the athlete's own preference
- Base the return-to-play decision on objective clinical criteria and patient safety (Correct answer)
- Request the team physician make the decision to avoid conflict
Correct answer: Base the return-to-play decision on objective clinical criteria and patient safety
The physiotherapist's primary obligation is patient safety, and return-to-play decisions must be grounded in objective clinical evidence.
PCE Ethics and Professionalism 3
A physiotherapist is treating a minor patient.
Who provides informed consent for treatment?