Patient safety is a multidimensionally moral and legal imperative right for a client’s safety. For this case, the medical ethics of ensuring patient’s safety and damage to them is a vital thing among healthcare providers. The concern for the government to emphasize the patients’ quality of health care services. Each healthcare department has a legal responsibility to investigate any report affecting patient safety (Kadivar et al., 2017). Through protective of patient safety, there’s the reduction in the reported cases that relates to patient endangered by the actions of healthcare workers. Also, due to law put in place by the federal government on the mandatory report by the patient who wants to ensure that the healthcare workers comply with the direction they promote greater social and economic justice. Basing on a professional point of view, the moral perspective of patient safety should be emphasized in both aspects of moral value in patient safety and medical obligations.
Question 1
In the United States federal law, the patient safety right is covered in the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 of the United States (Public Law 109-41), which was signed into law on July 29, 2005; this was meant to enhance data available to assess and resolve patient safety and quality issues (Secretary, 2017 par 1). The federal government enacted this law to raise a concern about patient safety to reduce the cases of patient intimidation and blackmail (Secretary, 2017 par 1). Furthermore, the state’s implementation by the state was based on sections 922, 923, and section 924 of the federal statute. In addition, the law improved patient safety through the encouragement of voluntary and confidential reporting of events that adversely affect patients. It was a signal of the Federal Government’s commitment to foster a safe culture in the United States. Patient safety created room for Organizations to collect and analyze confidential information reports by health care providers.
Consequently, being a state law meant establishing a Network of Patient Safety Database and evidence-based management of resources for the patient. Also, it was used to analyze national and state statistics that included trends and patterns of patient safety. Therefore, the PSQIA provided federal privilege and confidentiality protections for patient information and imposed civil money penalties for violating the act to the patient (Palmisano, 2005 p.62).
Question 2
Health care should meet patient’s right within the health system this help to build the patient relationship which would have been hindered and obscure. The rights, requirements, and roles of the clients and professionals have to be well defined in law, like patient safety and quality improvement. Both parties are aware of the limits and regulations that are in place to protect them from intimidation. For instance, Confidentiality Rights and Protection against false information are part of patient safety; this legal right covers both professionals and clients.
Confidentiality Rights
According to the (HIPPA), patient safety is the right thing that requires appropriate confidentiality. All medical records and information carried out during the therapy of the patient have to remain private. The HIPPA guidelines are stipulated in federal laws that mandate various patients’ rights to privacy and confidentiality to personal information (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018, par3). To ensure patient safety, the HIPPA act suggests mandatory reporting and informed consent as necessary to the patient.
Also, the client’s consent to sign forms that acknowledge receipt of certain information about himself is safe both to the professionals and the client. For this case, the health care workers need to use language the client can understand and keep the information private for the client’s safety. However, the social worker has to know the importance of making the patient’s confidential information be shared with others. For instance, if I think patient safety will be interfered with by hurting himself/herself or planning someone else, I will share the information.
Protection of Client from false information.
The false information is referred to as making an allegation about the patient that the reporter knows to be false. To protect the patient’s right and dignity from false claims, the federal law of PSQIA established consequences of penalty similar to those of failing to report the case of patient safety in the healthcare facility. Therefore, around twenty-nine states in the United States have come up with laws stipulating penalties for false reporting. The penalties related to inaccurate information offence is the sentence of five years and $5,000.
Question 3
The case where an individual fails to report patient safety in health facilities is a crime in most cases classified as a misdemeanor. These crimes are taken in some states as serious crimes, while other states like Arizona, Minnesota, and Illinois are a felony for failing to report such incidences. However, some states like Virginia and Delaware came up with fines only, and North Carolina, Maryland, had no penalty statutes related to federal laws. In some parts of the states are thinking to impose a law that will see reporting of suspected cases of patient safety and prosecute those who breaks the public Law (US code 41.109)
Case Example #1
In the investigation carried by the Joint Commission, they identified more than twenty potential cases. The investigated cases show that patient safety was repetitively failed to be reported and even closed without following regulations. Because of this, the high number of patients in New York City recorded the high number of patient harassment of almost four of them daily despite reports made from relatives and workers. (Nash, 2011)
Case Example #2
Additionally, have looked at the child death report data failure to follow the law of mandatory report of patient safety and professional law of practice lead to many cases of patient’s violation safety in Los Angeles. A failure to follow the federal law of patient safety made the patients remain unsafe, with some cases leading to the minor’s death (Los Angeles Times, 2013).
Case Example Consequences
In the two examples, failure to report on the patient demeaning safety vindicated the abuse of patient rights that needed both organizations to come up with required better training for their employee and initiate documentation of the reports concerning the patient. Through this, the professionals and supervisors can clarify the case of the patient safety reported. However, the report did not indicate whether the employees who failed to report the patient being unsafe were fined or jailed, given there’s still ongoing investigation of both cases.
Question 4
Having looked at the clients’ rights under federal and status law, employee professionals must go beyond to train more about the current regulations on patient safety. With signed informed consent and precise documentation of patient information, it can be easier to check the balance as the failure to do so can be a failure to know the patient suspected case of patient safety. For instance, as a manager, I will develop clear documentation of all patients in the facility, use the technology and seek supervisor Insight before making a patient safety report.
Clear documentation of All patients in Therapy sessions.
As a manager, clear documentation of the session and the client’s concern will give a clear picture of mandatory reporting, which is necessary for patient safety as provided by law to prosecute those found abusing the right of patient safety. Also, having clear documentation will help professional healthcare workers who seek insight from supervisors to protect the patient and clarify the professional need of report. Therefore, coming up with management ways will help improve patient safety in the health facility.
Use of Technology
Also, having looked at the federal law of patients’ safety, the possible way to improve their safety exists through technological change. For instance, through medication alerts, better tracking and reporting consultation will create room for complete patient safety given the available data in the system.
Seek Supervisor Insight Prior to making a Report of Patient Safety.
When the client has a problem concerning his safety, it is always clear she/he to seek professional needs of help. It is the same case when you decide on the best treatment plan or getting more information from the supervisor that can help clarify if the mandatory reporting of the client in a health care facility is needed.
Question 5
In summary, professional health care workers have to be aware of their role on the mandate report and relevant in making follow-up patient whereabouts. With a mandated reporter in place, the healthcare worker has several sources to help with questions or concerns when needing a patient safety report. For instance, the health care professionals may consult with other behavioural professionals to know the patient information’s wellbeing. Also, they can review the law protecting the patient on their own. As a healthcare professional who has gone through school, internship, and now a professional, I have noticed that individuals cut corners in life or neglect protocols for various reasons. For instance, the health care professional may miss checking on patient safety because of burnout, case overload, and lack of training, especially in work with CPS.
References
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018, September 14). Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/phlp/publications/topic/hipaa.html#:~:text=The%20Health%20Insurance%20Portability%20and,the%20patient’s%20consent%20or%20knowledge.
Kadivar, M., Manookian, A., Asghari, F., Niknafs, N., Okazi, A., & Zarvani, A. (2017). Ethical and legal aspects of patient’s safety: a clinical case report. Journal of medical ethics and history of medicine, 10.
Los Angeles Times. (2009, April 21). Files detail the deaths of 14 children. Los Angeles Times. https://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-child-death-story.html.
Nash, D. B. (2011). The patient safety act. Pharmacy and Therapeutics, 36(3), 118.
Palmisano, D. J. (2005). The Time Is Now for Patient Safety Legislation. Journal of Patient Safety, 1(1), 62–63. https://doi.org/10.1097/01209203-200503000-00011
Secretary, H. H. S. O. of the, & (OCR), O. for C. R. (2017, June 16). Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 Statute & Rule. HHS.gov. https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/patient-safety/statute-and-rule/index.html.
