Choosing Who Gets Priority for Treatment in Covid-19 Pandemic
Every individual has a right to good health, and the life of all people regardless of age, gender, and economic status matters. However, some situations need to prioritize other groups of people because they are likely to suffer more than others. When it comes to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is vital to prioritize the health workers by ensuring that they have the necessary personal protective equipment because they interact with many people as they deliver their duties. Saving the lives of health workers during the pandemic is equivalent to saving the lives of the public and those who receive services from the healthcare providers. It is also essential to consider those who are vulnerable in society and the aged because the pandemic effects are severe when it comes to this particular group. It is also essential to consider the general population because they are the majority and have a significant contribution to the spread of the virus. Prisoners can be the last in the priority list, but their lives matter just like the other people, and it is essential to ensure that no congestion and they are save from Covid-19.
Ethical Requirements of the Healthcare Professional/Patient Relationship
Different ethical requirements guide the relationship between the patient and the healthcare provider. One of the ethical requirements is to practice healthy communication skills to acquire vital information to enhance quality healthcare service to the patients. In the case study, Janine should have built a good communication relationship with Shirley to obtain crucial information about Jack's likelihood of having contracted Covid-19 after traveling on a cruise. It is crucial to provide healthcare providers with factual information concerning patient history to enable them make appropriate decision to handle the health condition. The information could be crucial in saving the lives of paramedics and other people attending to Jack before his death. Expressing clinical empathy is another ethical requirement that ensures health professionals effectively provide quality health and connect with the patient. Janine and her team expressed empathy to both Jack and her wife because they were providing the necessary care to the patient until his demise.
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Concept of Veracity of Healthcare Professional/Patient
The veracity concept relates to the principle of autonomy, and it ensures honesty between the patient and healthcare provider. Veracity is the basis of establishing trust that binds the patient and the health professional to work together and identify the appropriate treatment goals. The veracity concept expects the patients to provide truthful information concerning their medical history, treatment expectations, and other important information that enables clinicians to establish the appropriate treatment plan. In the case study, Jack and her wife did not adhere to the concept of integrity because they never shared the information that they have traveled to New Zealand using a cruise associated with severe Covid-19 outbreak. Such information was crucial for healthcare providers attending Jack to identify the appropriate treatment and how to handle the patient. Therefore, it is essential to provide factual information regarding healthcare because it significantly determines the provision of appropriate and quality healthcare to the patients.
Case Study 2
How to Allocate Beds (ICU) in the Pandemic and Who Gets Priority
It is a challenging puzzle to solve when trying to allocate a few beds to many patients, but it is vital to note that the life of each individual is essential. When making decisions concerning bed allocation, the critical things to consider are the patients' age and health condition. The pandemic seems to affect the aged more than the young and save the lives of the old in society; it is important to prioritize them when allocating ICU beds. In most cases, older people have health complications associated with old age, and it is essential to ensure that their health is a priority to avoid more fatalities. The elderly also might be having mobility issues, and to relocate them from one place to another or move them for long distances is problematic and causes stress to the patient. Therefore, it is essential to consider allocating some of the beds in the unit to ensure they receive quality healthcare and avoid moving from one hospital to another, straining their already weak bodies.
The patient's health condition is another factor that the healthcare professional needs to consider when allocating the scarce ICU beds in the health facility. The patients might be in bad health conditions and need emergency care, and if that is the case, healthcare providers should prioritize such patients to save their lives. When the patient is not old and needs emergency care, and there are also old patients in the facility, the health workers in the ICU will have to prioritize the young patient who needs emergency care. Making such a decision is prudent because the old patient who might not require emergency care can wait for some time, unlike the young patient who needs critical care. It is essential to use such factors to determine who is the first to receive treatment in the ICU. All patients will receive the necessary treatment without having to lose those who needed emergency care.
Since each person's life is essential regardless of economic status, people with private health insurance should wait like the other people unless they need emergency care services. The individuals' ability to pay medical bills through insurance is not a factor to consider when making decisions on who will be of priority when allocating ICU beds. Suppose the health condition of individuals with health insurance coverage does not require urgent medical attention does not mean that the facility will leave behind those in need of emergency care to attend to an individual who is not in critical condition. In that case, they should give way to other individuals who are in a critical stage and need intensive care services to survive. It is vital to make such consideration to validate that the lives of all people matter regardless of their financial status.
Ethical Requirements of the Healthcare Professional/Patient Relationship
The obligation to provide quality healthcare service to the patients is one of the ethical requirements that Henry needs to consider. As much as it is risky to interact with the Covid-19 patients in the hospital, healthcare providers should ensure that patients receive ultimate care. It is vital for the hospital is to ensure that they provide the necessary measures and pieces of equipment to protect health workers from contracting the disease and spreading it to friends and family members. When making ICU bed allocation decisions, the health providers should consider the ethical principles of beneficence and justice, enabling them to provide healthcare service, which is equitable and equal to all patients. Embracing justice when providing healthcare service in a healthcare facility is important because it allows all the patients, regardless of social or economic status, to receive quality and equal care. Healthcare providers should observe all the ethical requirements to ensure quality healthcare service provision.
Duty of Care in the Case Study
All healthcare providers must prioritize and provide quality healthcare service to patients. Their duty to provide treatment and care to the patients can be complicated because, in some cases, they have to risk their lives for others to survive. Henry, in this case, study, has no option but to continue providing intensive care to the patients of Covid-19. The most critical thing is for the hospital to provide the necessary protective equipment to ensure that the lives of healthcare workers remain safe. The hospital that Henry is working for seems to support the healthcare providers by providing accommodation to those who will contract the virus in the line of duty. It is important to ensure that such workers have minimum contact with their family members especially when they are infected. Providing accommodation to infected health workers is good. Still, it could be better to provide financial support to the family when the breadwinners are sick in quarantine facilities.
