Ethics Discussion Board #4: Significance of Clinician Upholding Privacy and Confidentiality

Shiv failed to uphold the patient’s privacy and confidentiality by acting as an ad-hoc interpreter denying the patient chance to get the accurate clinical terms. First, Shiv would have handled the situation better by requesting permission from the attending physician in case a professional interpreter was not available. While the situation at hand did not have any medical emergency, it was apparent that the patient needed someone to comfort her to reduce the level of discomfort. Secondly, Shiv would have handled the situation differently by informing his group about what he wanted to communicate to the patient. Gaining the approval of the whole medical group attending the patient would have gained Shiv a better chance to identify specific medical terms to use in making Haitian woman comfortable, hence improving the treatment accuracy. Finally, an accurate way to maintain objectivity and prevent conflict of interest was to avoid commenting regarding the situation faced by the patient. Despite that the patient had already felt embarrassed, it was not

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