Chapter 24 Ethics

The American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) reserves the right to revoke any certification from an individual whom it has registered. Reasons for revocation can vary from ethical violations to failure to maintain continuing education credits, just to mention two. This process of sanctioning demonstrates professional _____ to society.

• morals

• self-regulation

• ethics

• collective bargaining

Answer explanation

All ARRT-registered radiologic technologists subscribe to the ethical principles contained in the organization’s Code of Ethics and apply them to problems in their professional practice. The public expects all professionals to exhibit self-discipline within a system of self-regulation. This sense of self-discipline is particularly important within the health care professions, in which errors in judgment can have serious, even life-threatening, consequences.

Failure to pay one’s federal income taxes would be an example of a(n)

• misdemeanor violation.

• moral violation.

• professional conduct violation.

• violation of federal law.

Answer explanation

Laws are regulations established by a government that are applicable to people within a certain political subdivision. All persons in a society are required to comply with laws, including federal income taxes.

You are enjoying an evening with a friend at the theater. The person behind you routinely texts messages to his girlfriend about the movie and what is happening. This behavior would be a

• ethical violation.

• violation of local laws and ordinances.

• violation of socially accepted values.

• moral violation.

Answer explanation

Social contract theory attempts to describe the relationship that exists between two mutually dependent persons or groups of persons in a society. Under this theory, these persons or groups have certain expectations of each other and act accordingly.

When you were a student radiographer, the importance of radiation protection was constantly stressed, and you have incorporated the principle of ALARA as a professional value. As an employee working within a busy imaging department, you work with some technologists who do not practice radiation protection as you have been taught. One technologist in particular routinely overexposes patients to get a “perfect image for the radiologist.” This poor technologist practice would be an example of

• a hospital rule violation.

• an ethical violation.

• poor morals.

• a violation of personal values.

Answer explanation

Society expects a profession, through its collective members, to generate its own statement of acceptable and unacceptable behavior, usually in the form of a code of ethics. Performance that is not in compliance with these established standards of practice is viewed as an ethical violation and routine overexposure to patients is a clear ALARA ethical violation.

Which of the following would be considered an unethical practice for a radiologic technologist?

• Repeating a radiograph because of incorrect technique selection

• Watching an interesting case

• Criticizing a doctor or team member in a private or public forum

• Reporting unethical practices of a coworker

Answer explanation

Professional ethics consists of rules of conduct or standards beyond conformance to either law or etiquette, the internal controls of a profession based on human values or moral principles. It would be unethical to publicly criticize a fellow health care worker or professional in either a public or private forum. The key factor is the characteristic of conduct beyond conformance to either law or etiquette. Questions concerning the competency or professional judgment of the physicians working with you often raise serious ethical issues and should be handled with professional discretion.

You are the director of a busy medical imaging department. One of your technologists has been accused of looking up the personal medical records and radiography reports of his brother’s girlfriend. The girlfriend visited the hospital as a patient for an ultrasound examination of the pelvis to rule out pregnancy. Disciplinary action for this technologist would be appropriate because of a violation of

• local statutes and ordinances.

• state laws.

• federal constitutional laws.

• professional ethics.

Answer explanation

Of the values associated with radiologic practice, patient confidentiality is the most easily identified and the most prevalent. Information obtained directly from the patient, observed, or obtained from other sources should be kept strictly confidential. The radiographer should be alert to situations that may compromise patient confidences.

Being rude and impolite to a patient’s family members because they are asking how long an examination will take, is an example of a(n)

• professional etiquette violation.

• ethics violation.

• violation of the institution’s standards of care.

• ethical dilemma.

Answer explanation

Professional etiquette, the manners and attitudes toward patients generally accepted by practitioners, should not be confused with professional ethics. Rudeness to patients or insensitivity to their need to preserve modesty may violate our sense of professional propriety, but are not considered breaches in professional ethics

A technologist who has completed a procedure on a patient leaves the area grumbling, “I hate to do HIV patients because I am afraid of catching the disease.” A member of the housekeeping staff hears the technologist and asks who the HIV patient is so he can pass the information along to his coworkers for safety reasons. The technologist responds by giving the patient’s name and room number. This act constitutes a(n)

• ethical dilemma.

• ethics violation.

• moral violation.

• social error.

Answer explanation

Of the values associated with radiologic practice, patient confidentiality is the most easily identified and the most prevalent. Information obtained directly from the patient, observed, or obtained from other sources should be kept strictly confidential. Any compromise to patient confidentiality is viewed as an ethical violation.

Using moral rules as your complete guide to determine appropriate professional behavior

• assumes everyone has the same moral values as you do, which is generally true.

• is a reliable strategy to avoid ethical dilemmas.

• is too restrictive and of no value in decision making.

• has its weaknesses because others may not have the same moral value system as you.

Answer explanation

The principles that make up an ethical code take into consideration the role of human values and virtues. Recognizing that not all people have identical values, further guidance is provided through standards of professional conduct. Although some values can vary from person to person, basic human values remain constant.

The term veracity refers to

• preventing evil and harm.

• doing no harm but also doing good.

• telling the truth.

• being persistent and tenacious.

Answer explanation

Veracity involves being truthful and acting in a truthful manner. Telling the truth is expected of medical professionals.