Chapter 5 Objectives
1. List three aspects of self-care for radiographers.
Well-being, knowledge, and self-esteem
2. List the ethical principles that apply to radiographers.
1. Beneficence: Goodness; actions that bring about good are considered right
2. Non-maleficence: No evil; an obligation not to inflict harm
3. Veracity: Truth; an obligation to tell the truth
4. Fidelity: Faithfulness; an obligation to be loyal and faithful
5. Justice: Justice; Fairness; an obligation to act with equity
6. Autonomy: Self-determination; respecting the independence of others and
acting with self-reliance
3. List six patient rights.
1. Considerate and Respectful Care: Self-explanatory
2. Information: Patients have the right to know who is helping them and their
qualifications. Are entitled to copies of their billing information, medical
records, and diagnostic images which should be provided depending on
institution protocols. Radiographers should be able to explain procedures but
are not allowed to discuss patient care, diagnosis, or prognosis.
3. Privacy and Confidentiality: Privacy states that the patients modesty will be
respected and that every effort will be made to maintain their sense of dignity.
Confidentiality pertains to hospitals being required to provide protection for
patients financial and medical information and how no patient information can
be released without their express consent and not before records have been
depersonalized.
4. Informed Consent: While patient consent for routine procedures is given on
admission and is implied through the continued use of hospital services,
Informed Consent is necessary for any procedure that can bring with it
substantial risk, or is considered experimental.
5. Right to Refuse Treatment or Examination: Self-explanatory and can consent
can be revoked at any time during the procedure. If this occurs, find out why it
has happened and try to fix it, otherwise, allow them to gracefully leave while
notifying the attending physician.
6. Death With Dignity: Is the concept that patients have the right to die. Presents
a potential ethical conflict in todays world because technology allows for the
indefinite care of individuals and that might not be what is best for the patient.
4. What is informed consent?
Informed Consent is the patient agreeing to the procedure after having been
informed about all of the procedures and risk involved both with the procedure
itself, and the consequences of not following through with the procedure.
5. Describe the legalities of an informed consent.
- Patients need a full explanation of the procedure and its risks and benefits
- Must be competent in order to sign
- Only parents/ legal guardians can sign for a minor
- Only a legal guardian can sign for the mentally incompetent
- Consent forms must be presented in full before they can be signed
- Only the physician on the consent form can conduct the operation
- Any condition on the form must be met, for example, if the form states that a
family member will be present, consent is not valid until the family member is
there
- Informed consent can be revoked at anytime during the procedure.
6. List three specific acts of intentional misconduct, unintentional misconduct.
Intentional: False Imprisonment, Libel/Slander, Assault/Battery
Unintentional: Malpractice, Negligence (Gross is an act that involves reckless
disregard for life or limb, Contributory is where the injured party contributed to the
injury, Corporate is when the hospital as an entity is negligent)
7. What are some actions that can be considered to be a tort?
Assault – Threat of touching in an injurious way
Battery – Unlawful touching of a person without their consent
False Imprisonment – Unjustifiable detention of a person against his/her will
Invasion of Privacy – Disclosure of a patients private affairs or information or
using the patients name for personal gain
Libel – Written slander
Slander – Defamation of character
8. What is the difference between empathy and sympathy?
Empathy is understanding someones pain while sympathy is recognizing
someones pain
9. translate:
a. Res ipsa loquitur: The Thing Speaks For Itself; that there was an obvious
wrongdoing (like an instrument being left inside the patient after an operation
b. Respondeat superior: Let the Master Respond; that the employer is
responsible for the employees actions committed during the scope of
employment
10. List five reasons for keeping accurate medical records.
1. Provide data about patient progress and current status for other health team
members
2. Prevents repetitious examinations
3. Systematic approach to therapeutic care
4. Allows for a longitudinal comparison that facilitates a more comprehensive
approach to health care
5. Serve as a resource for research investigations
11. What are the seven Cs of malpractice prevention?
1. Competence: Knowing and adhering to professional standards and
maintaining professional competence
2. Compliance: When professionals comply with policies and procedures in the
workplace to avoid patient injuries and litigation
3. Charting: Making sure that any addition to a chart or any document is done
completely, consistently, and objectively
4. Communication: Injuries and malpractice can be avoided by improving
communication among professionals
5. Confidentiality: Protecting confidentiality is the legal and ethical responsibility
of the healthcare provider.
6. Courtesy: A courteous attitude and demeanor can improve patient rapport
and lessen the likelihood of a lawsuit
7. Caution: Personal injuries can occur unexpectedly and may lead to lawsuits
12. Define
a. Advance directive: A document that outlines specific wishes about medical
care to be followed in the event that an individual can not communicate their
decision
b. Assault: The threat of touching in an injurious way
c. Battery: Unlawful touching of a person without his or her consent
d. Chart: Refers to an extensive compilation of a patients medical care and
information
e. Charting: Refers to the process of adding any information to a chart or
document that will be incorporated into a chart.
f. Chronic: Constant
g. Defendant: The one being accused in a lawsuit
h. Empathy: Being able to understand other’s plights
i. Ethical analysis
j. Ethics: A branch of philosophy that can be defined as a systematic reflection
on morality
k. False imprisonment: Keeping people against their will
l. Felony: A serious crime, violent or nonviolent
m. HIPAA: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
n. Libel: Written defamation of someone’s character
o. Malpractice: Professional negligence in the context of a relationship between
a professional person or patient/client
p. Misdemeanor: Violations of laws that regulate practice, such as licensing
requirements or scope of practice limitations
q. Moral agent
r. Negligence: Neglect or omission of reasonable care or caution
s. Plaintiff
t. RIMS
u. Slander: Spoken defamation of someone’s character
v. Tort