Question

Describe how you would respond to each one. Please remember to answer the question completely and with good details or examples.

1. A patient offers a gratuity to the medical assistant who helped him/her obtain samples of medication. identify the ethical issue and describe the appropriate response.

2. A medical assistant who is ethically opposed to abortion is asked to refer a patient to a clinic that performs elective abortions. Develop a plan detailing how the medical assistant would fulfill professional duties without allowing personal ethics to influence the care of the patient.

3. A situation occurs in which the medical assistant would set aside personal beliefs in order to provide compassionate and professional care to a patient who practices a different religion than his/her own and details how he/she would respond.

Answer 1

In medical scenarios involving ethics, a medical assistant should decline gratuities, refrain from letting personal beliefs influence patient referrals, and provide care with respect to all patients, irrespective of differing religious beliefs.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a patient offers a gratuity, the ethical issue is the potential for compromising the medical assistant's professional integrity and appearance of impropriety. The appropriate response would be to politely decline the gratuity, explaining that ensuring the patient's health and well-being is part of their professional service.

When it comes to personal beliefs around topics such as abortion, the medical assistant should separate personal ethics from professional duties by referring the patient to a provider without expressing personal views, ensuring the patient receives the necessary care they seek. Compassionate and professional care regardless of religious differences requires setting aside personal beliefs, focusing on the universal principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice to provide the best possible care for the patient.