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Infected Surgeon
Confidentiality
Case: Infected surgeon and a duty to disclose
It is extremely important that persons with HIV status are treated fairly and ethically, and healthcare institutions do not support undue hysteria regarding the actions of healthcare workers with HIV. However, given the undeniable risks that HIV poses to patients, it seems unwise for Dr. M to continue in his current capacity as a hands-on surgeon. This is not because HIV workers should be singled out as particularly 'bad' -- this is true of all healthcare workers infected with communicable diseases transmitted through blood. Thus Dr. M should not perform surgical operations in which he could potentially cut himself and expose the patient. At minimum his actions during surgery must follow all existing protocols for healthcare workers and he must inform his patients. But in light of the potential risks, it seems best that Dr. M does not continue in his current capacity.
Dr. M, of course, could still be present in the surgical theater, give advice...
But the actual hands-on actions of surgery are not consequence-free, and even if the risk is unlikely, it is still present. This is not simply an ethically valid argument -- it is also the law. In all healthcare legislation and case law, there is a balancing of patient rights and physician's social obligations. For example, in Tarasoff v. Regents, it was found that a patient's right to privacy must be weighed against the dangers posed to society (211). Of course, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act employers must make reasonable accommodations for employees' disabilities (and under the law, illnesses such as HIV can be considered disabilities). But if the disability is threatening to the safety and health of patients, and the employee cannot perform without putting others at risk, the hospital has a legal as well as an ethical obligation to offer Dr. M different types of work in which he would not come into contact with the blood of a patient and potentially expose the patient to HIV. Yes,…
Green provides some clear guidelines to assist health education and promotion specialists in the identification and design of health promotion techniques for implementation in health promotion and disease prevention programs. Discuss how five of the guidelines presented by Dr. Green could assist you in the selection of an appropriate health promotion technique. Support your answer with appropriate examples. The module gives really simple guidelines as to the how the process of
(1999) which are: 1) Those with serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder with major depression and who use alcohol and drugs to self-mediate to cope with the symptoms; and 2) Those with borderline personality and anti-social personality disorders including anxiety disorder that is complicated by use of alcohol and illicit drugs. (Mather et al. 1999) Presenting further difficulty is the establishment of problems with alcohol and illicit drug use
Legal and Ethical Issues in Healthcare Healthcare ethics have to do with the wide range of moral decisions that have to be made in medical practice. These are the other considerations that have to be made besides the regular policies and procedures designed for effective medical practice. Of the various aspects of the human body and life, none is as important as health. Technological advancements in the practice of medicine and