Deck 8: Technological Advances in Health Care: Blessing or Ethics Nightmare

Question 1

Medical support systems include CPOE, data warehousing, and __________ computing.

Answer 1

cloud

Question 2

Efforts for quality of care like MIPS and MACRA increase the reliance on __________

Answer 2

health information technology.

Question 3

Informed consent is necessary especially for research subjects. Informed consent includes __________ __________ __________ and __________

Answer 3

competency, voluntariness, disclosure, authorization.

Question 4

In the Willowbrook study, issues of competency were not addressed. However, the subjects were __________ and __________

Question 5

Synthetic biology is a new genetic science that shows great promise. However, it includes ethics issues related to __________ and __________

Question 6

Increasing public benefit from science, while decreasing harm is called __________

Question 7

When a researcher includes the protection of further generations in his/her protocols for research, he/she is demonstrating __________

Question 8

Because computer/robotic assisted surgery provides great benefit and also great cost, the principle of __________ must be used in determining access.

Question 9

The use of a supercomputer such as IBM Watson promises benefit in diagnosis and treatment. However, it threatens the __________ of physicians and other practitioners.

Question 10

There is a need to balance the provider's orientation to __________ with the administrators use of __________ when addressing advanced technology in healthcare practice

Question 11

Using the information in Chapter 8, discuss three reasons why advances in technology can be an ethics nightmare.

Question 12

Some providers do not want to convert to EHR and keep their paper-based records. Using information in Chapter 8 and ethics principles, give 3 reasons why providers would make this choice.

Question 13

Justice is often an ethics concern went considering the use of advanced technologies. Using the information from Chapter 8, discuss two ethics issues that hospitals face when making decisions about the use of advanced technology.

Question 14

An advanced 3T MRI machine is an example of which of the following?

A) health information technology
B) medical technology
C) electronic medical support system
D) clinical support system

Question 15

A patient participant in a research study wishes to drop out of the study but is reluctant to do so because they feel intimidated by the researcher. Which element of ethical medical research on human subjects is compromised?

A) authorization
B) competence
C) disclosure
D) voluntariness

Question 16

In the context of research using human subjects, the element of competence refers to which of the following?

A) The opportunity the patient has to decide whether they will participate in the study on the basis of their own beliefs and feelings
B) The patient's understanding of the legal and ethical aspects of the study.
C) The patient's knowledge that they are participating in a study and informed consent for that participation.
D) The patient's understanding of the treatment, its potential side effects, and their probability of receiving possible outcomes

Question 17

Why was the choice of subjects for the Willowbrook study unethical?

A) The subjects were all from the same school, so the study results could not be applied to the general population.
B) The subjects were given the experimental treatment whether they had hepatitis or not, which could have harmed the control group.
C) The subjects were all adolescent minors who had mental disabilities and were not competent to give informed consent.
D) All of the above.

Question 18

Which action by researchers using human subjects demonstrates a commitment to ethical research practices?

A) Having a neutral third-party review board evaluate the research study, the subjects, and the methodologies of the study.
B) Bypassing regulating agencies to ensure that new medical breakthroughs quickly reach the patients who need them the most.
C) Recruiting subjects from among disadvantaged populations who are most in need of the compensation the study will provide.
D) Emphasizing the potential benefits of the treatment and downplaying potential risks so that subjects will not be hesitant to participate.

Question 19

A government passes legislation banning further research related to a controversial new technology. Which ethical principle is most at risk due to the government's actions?

A) democratic deliberation
B) responsible stewardship
C) public beneficence
D) freedom of intellectual efforts

Question 20

Which ethical principle most closely deals with considering the rights of future generations who will be affected by the ethical research decisions made by the present generation?

A) public beneficence
B) responsible stewardship
C) freedom of intellectual efforts
D) democratic deliberation

Question 21

A team of researchers recognizes that the line of scientific inquiry they are pursuing has the potential for both public benefits and the risk of harm to the public. What decision will the team make if they are guided by the principle of public beneficence?

A) Halt inquiry due to the risk of public harm.
B) Proceed with inquiry due to the potential public benefits.
C) Seek to maximize public benefits while minimizing the risk of public harm.
D) None of the above

Question 22

Two patients of the same healthcare provider need the same complex surgery. The provider refers one patient with comprehensive insurance benefits and adequate financial resources to a surgeon who specializes in the latest robotic-assisted surgery techniques. The provider refers the other patient, who has limited resources and insurance benefits, to a surgeon who provides the existing standard of care. Which ethical principle is most directly violated?

A) justice
B) public beneficence
C) democratic deliberation
D) responsible stewardship

Question 23

A hospital administrator recognizes that robotic-assisted abdominal surgery offers improved outcomes for patients and improved working conditions for surgeons and other surgical staff members, but hesitates to invest in the necessary technology due to limited budget and concerns about the feasibility of passing the costs of the equipment on to the patient base in a low-income area. Which correctly describes the ethical dilemma of the administrator?

A) If the administrator does not invest in the equipment, they could be preventing patients from receiving the most beneficent treatment.
B) If the administrator does invest in the equipment, only socioeconomically advantaged patients will be able to utilize it, creating inequalities in patient care.
C) Both A and B
D) Neither A nor B

Question 24

A hospital administrative board decides to invest heavily in 3T MRI machines, replacing all of its existing 1.5T machines. Which line of reasoning used by the administrative board raises ethical questions?

A) "Investing in these machines will give us an advertising edge over other nearby hospitals that cannot afford to upgrade."
B) "Investing in these machines will enable us to provide more MRI time slots to the community because many patients will really only need the machines to perform fast 1.5T imaging."
C) "Investing in these machines will enable us receive higher reimbursement from health insurance providers regardless of the image quality produced."
D) All of the above

Question 25

Which emerging innovation directly calls into question the role and usefulness of individual medical providers?

A) IBM Watson
B) synthetic biology
C) 3T and higher MRI technology
D) computer- and robot-assisted surgeries

Question 26

Which statement by a healthcare provider demonstrates commitment to ethical principles?

A) "Regardless of the cost to patients and insurers, I want my practice to have the latest and best technology, so I will upgrade to an EHR."
B) "Using an EHR offers many benefits but poses greater risks to patient privacy, so all in my practice will be trained in data security."
C) "My practice has operated successfully and with minimal errors for decades, so I see no reason to adopt an EHR now."
D) "I do not have a lot of experience with computers, but my practice will adopt an EHR so that we do not lose Medicare incentive payments."

Question 27

Which correctly describes the relationship between EHR use and the principle of nonmaleficence?

A) A provider who chooses to use an EHR despite having limited experience with technology may contradict the principle of nonmaleficence.
B) A provider who rushes to adopt an EHR because of quality-of-care benefits despite concerns about patient data security may contradict the principle of nonmaleficence.
C) A provider who chooses not to use an EHR despite quality-of-care benefits because of the expense of system purchase and training may contradict the principle of nonmaleficence.
D) A provider who chooses to use an EHR because of quality-of-care benefits but also keeps some paper copies of data entered in the EHR may contradict the principle of nonmaleficence.

Question 28

EHR software is an example of health information technology.

Question 29

Because the participants in the Tuskegee study agreed to participate and were compensated for their participation, the standard of patient autonomy was maintained.

Question 30

In cases where informed decision makers such as trained medical staff or governmental officials agree that a research study has the potential to benefit a large number of people, written informed consent from participants is not needed.

Question 31

The use of a 3T MRI machine to produce 1.5T MRI exams does not pose any ethical concerns as long as the referring provider, the patient, and the patient's insurance company are aware of the image quality that will be produced.

Question 32

Under MACRA, a medical provider who prescribes a treatment that does not adhere to traditional best-practice protocols may be evaluated negatively in comparison with other providers, even if the treatment is effective.

Question 33

If a medical provider has successfully practiced for many years using paper medical records and has limited experience with computer technology which could result in user error, there is no ethical reason why the medical provider should switch to an EHR.