Medical Law and Ethics Flashcards
Documentation
Notes documenting all prescriptions and refill
authorizations.
Corrections
Draw a line through the error so that it is still
legible. Do not black out or use correction fluid
to cover it up
Confidentiality
Health care professionals have a duty to protect
the privacy of the pt., therefore, medical records
should not be released to a third party without
written permission, signed by the patient or
patient’s legal representative.
Technological Threats to Confidentiality
The implementation of HIPAA imposes
penalties for breaches of confidentiality
regarding medical records that identify
the patient’s by name
Transfer to another physician
Patient must sign an authorization to release
records to another physician.
3 types of consent
• Expressed consent can be written or spoken.
Implied consent does not have to be spoken.
• Informed consent implies the patient
understands
Vital Statistics
• Numbers collected for the population of: o live births o deaths o fetal deaths o marriages o divorces o induced terminations of pregnancy o any change in civil status that occurs during an individual’s lifetime.
In most states it is against the law for an
attending physician to sign a death certificate if
the death was
o Possibly due to criminal causes. o Not attended to by a physician within a specified length of time before death. o Due to causes undetermined by the physician. o Violent or otherwise suspicious.
Breach of Confidentiality
Unauthorized release of patient information to a third party
Civil Law
areas of law not classified as criminal
National Provider Identifier (NPI)
Unique identifier assigned to health care providers
Privileged Communication
private information shared between a patient and a health care provider
Qui tam
Latin means: Who as well for the king as for himself sues I this matter” this allows a private citizen to file a lawsuit against U.S government
Deposition
legal proceedings which a party answers questions under oath but not in open court
