Deck 16: Ethics and Ethical Standards

Question 1

Whether written or unwritten, every organization has a system or code of morals based on how its leaders want to relate to customers and others

Answer 1

True

Question 2

A significant shortcoming found within the health care professions is the absence of published ethical standards proscribing the conduct of their members.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The standards of conduct of most individuals must for the most part be inferred from their behavior.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

It is the managers of the organization, not the employees, who are responsible for understanding and complying with all applicable laws and regulations.

Question 5

Questions concerning a potential conflict of interest must always be addressed by either risk management or administration.

Question 6

It is illegal for a physician who has a part ownership in an outside clinical service such as a laboratory to refer his or her patients to that service.

Question 7

Employees who also hold public office do so primarily as representatives of the organization.

Question 8

As well as disseminating ethical standards of conduct to its employees, it should also distribute these standards to vendors, contractors, and others as necessary.

Question 9

High-profile ethical problems involving highly-placed individuals have generally had the effect of encouraging ethical behavior at lower organizational levels.

Question 10

The maintenance of a dedicated and motivated workforce begins with the ethics and character of its leaders.

Question 11

Concerning ethics and ethical conduct, it is the individual supervisor's responsibility to:

A) Ensure that ethical breaches occurring at higher levels are rationalized and thus justified.
B) Ensure that all employees receive, review, and understand the organization's ethical standards of conduct.
C) Send employees who have questions concerning ethical conduct to administration or human resources.
D) None of the above.

Question 12

Indicate which of the following can be described as a breach of ethical standards:

A) Employee A, who is all caught up on his regularly assigned work for the day with still two hours to go until quitting time, fills the time outlining a plan for starting his own business.
B) Employee B calls in sick so that she can get in a day's Christmas shopping.
C) Employee C, always willing to do a favor for a friend, clocks out for a coworker who quietly leaves work early.
D) All of the above.

Question 13

Indicate which of the following appears to represent a true conflict of interest:

A) You recommend your cousin for a job opening in another department.
B) Your brother-in-law would like to do business with your employer, so you tell him who he should contact.
C) You place an order for supplies with a company of which your spouse is part owner.
D) None of the above.

Question 14

Issues involving medical ethics are ordinarily addressed by:

A) Applying policies established by the organization's board of directors.
B) Referring them immediately to the organization's legal counsel.
C) The highest level of management in the chain of command in which an issue arises.
D) Comparing potential solutions with what other organizations have done.

Question 15

An organizational commitment to integrity is often expressed in the form of:

A) A pronouncement from the chief executive officer.
B) A set of guidelines provided by Medicare.
C) A response to a mandate from the state's Department of Health.
D) A regulatory compliance program.

Question 16

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has identified areas of health care delivery that are susceptible to fraud and abuse as well as ________.

Question 17

_________ is a practice that some follow to provide a higher rate of reimbursement than the called for by the code that reflects the actual service

Question 18

To address medical ethics issues that may not be clearly covered by policy, some larger healthcare organizations have ________________.

Question 19

Patient _____________ addresses the right of an individual to designate the extent to which he or she will be cared for under certain extreme circumstances.

Question 20

The ethical and moral issues involved in the _____________ of services have long been with the industry.