Two problems are occurring concurrently in the case of Fran. The first involves the parents attempt to force Fran to continue life-sustaining cancer treatments when she has made up her mind that she no longer wishes to continue the treatments. She has come to the decision that her quality of life has diminished and she wants to enjoy the time she has left. The second problem involves the parent’s threat to take Fran to court in attempt to have her judged incompetent, thereby allowing them to take control of her treatment. While Fran will always be her parent’s child, she is 32 years old, and is legally an adult who is capable of making her own decisions. Although Fran’s parents believe they are looking out for her best interest, their steadfast persistence in having Fran continue cancer treatments is not taking into account that Fran is an autonomous individual capable of making her own decisions.
Fran’s physician has acknowledged and demonstrated respect for her wishes by terminating her cancer treatment. If the physicians and health care workers are unsure of the rightness or wrongness of their action, they have the option of contacting an ethics committee. In North America, many hospitals have ethics committees that help to determine the rightness or wrongness of healthcare workers’ actions (Doyal, …show more content…
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted in 1996 to protect a patient’s rights to confidentiality (Fremgen, 2012). HIPAA is a privacy rule that requires a patient’s consent in order to share personal health information (Goldberg, 2014). Those that break this rule may be subject to fines or imprisonment (Fremgen, 2012). Fran rescinded her parent’s rights to obtain any medical information about her care and treatment. Consequently, Fran’s healthcare providers were no longer legally abler to share her personal information with her
Fran’s physician has acknowledged and demonstrated respect for her wishes by terminating her cancer treatment. If the physicians and health care workers are unsure of the rightness or wrongness of their action, they have the option of contacting an ethics committee. In North America, many hospitals have ethics committees that help to determine the rightness or wrongness of healthcare workers’ actions (Doyal, …show more content…
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted in 1996 to protect a patient’s rights to confidentiality (Fremgen, 2012). HIPAA is a privacy rule that requires a patient’s consent in order to share personal health information (Goldberg, 2014). Those that break this rule may be subject to fines or imprisonment (Fremgen, 2012). Fran rescinded her parent’s rights to obtain any medical information about her care and treatment. Consequently, Fran’s healthcare providers were no longer legally abler to share her personal information with her