Hcs 335 Ethics Case Study: Medical Assistant
Ethics Case Study
HCS 335
Holly Martinez de Andino, MS, RN, CLNC
August 21, 2012
Wendy Herrold
Ethics Case Study Week 2 Introduction
“Jerry McCall is Dr. William’s office assistant. He has received professional training as both a medical assistant and a LPN. He is handling all the phone calls while the receptionist is at lunch. A patient calls and says he must have a prescription refill for Valium, an antidepressant medication, called in right away to his pharmacy, since he is leaving for the airport in thirty minutes. He says that Dr. Williams is a personal friend and always gives him a small supply of Valium when he has to fly. No one except Jerry is in the office at this time.” (Fremgen, 2009 p. 85)
According to the …show more content…
While Jerry has taken classes for his LPN learning how to administer medications and pharmaceutical principles, he is not qualified or legally authorized to call in a refill for any patient’s medications, without the consent of the physician. Jerry should not be offering to refill a medication without reviewing the patient’s medical chart, and speaking with the doctor. He does not have the knowledge or education to back up making a decision like that. If the medication were for blood pressure or another daily necessary medication, Jerry should still check with the doctor before ordering a refill. The reason for this is that the doctor may want to change the patient’s medication which would require a new prescription or may need to see the patient before refilling the medication. If a patient has not been seen in the office for over a year, it is important for a doctor to see that patient in case something has changed in the patient’s medical history.
According to our text is says, “The doctrine of respondeat superior comes from Latin origins and means let the master answer”; meaning the employer is responsible for the actions of all their employees (Fremgen, 2009). The doctrine also says that an employer is responsible …show more content…
He is the medical assistant/LPN, and not the physician. He should let the patient know that the doctor is the only one that can order a refill for any prescriptions and apologize. Explain further that he will leave Dr. Williams a message that the patient called, what is being requested and the situation. If it is an immediate request then perhaps the doctor should be paged, but Jerry should not approve or call in the refill. If the patient continues to try and create problems then he should be reminded to call earlier the next time he has a request like a refill on his valium and not to wait for the last minute.
Legally, Jerry can face a lawsuit and possibly lose his job for ordering a medication, especially a narcotic, because he is not licensed to do so. If something were to happen to the patient Jerry could face a lawsuit, and we do not know if he has malpractice insurance, or if the doctor’s office has insurance for all employees. Jerry should simply do his job by taking a message and passing it along to the
HCS 335
Holly Martinez de Andino, MS, RN, CLNC
August 21, 2012
Wendy Herrold
Ethics Case Study Week 2 Introduction
“Jerry McCall is Dr. William’s office assistant. He has received professional training as both a medical assistant and a LPN. He is handling all the phone calls while the receptionist is at lunch. A patient calls and says he must have a prescription refill for Valium, an antidepressant medication, called in right away to his pharmacy, since he is leaving for the airport in thirty minutes. He says that Dr. Williams is a personal friend and always gives him a small supply of Valium when he has to fly. No one except Jerry is in the office at this time.” (Fremgen, 2009 p. 85)
According to the …show more content…
While Jerry has taken classes for his LPN learning how to administer medications and pharmaceutical principles, he is not qualified or legally authorized to call in a refill for any patient’s medications, without the consent of the physician. Jerry should not be offering to refill a medication without reviewing the patient’s medical chart, and speaking with the doctor. He does not have the knowledge or education to back up making a decision like that. If the medication were for blood pressure or another daily necessary medication, Jerry should still check with the doctor before ordering a refill. The reason for this is that the doctor may want to change the patient’s medication which would require a new prescription or may need to see the patient before refilling the medication. If a patient has not been seen in the office for over a year, it is important for a doctor to see that patient in case something has changed in the patient’s medical history.
According to our text is says, “The doctrine of respondeat superior comes from Latin origins and means let the master answer”; meaning the employer is responsible for the actions of all their employees (Fremgen, 2009). The doctrine also says that an employer is responsible …show more content…
He is the medical assistant/LPN, and not the physician. He should let the patient know that the doctor is the only one that can order a refill for any prescriptions and apologize. Explain further that he will leave Dr. Williams a message that the patient called, what is being requested and the situation. If it is an immediate request then perhaps the doctor should be paged, but Jerry should not approve or call in the refill. If the patient continues to try and create problems then he should be reminded to call earlier the next time he has a request like a refill on his valium and not to wait for the last minute.
Legally, Jerry can face a lawsuit and possibly lose his job for ordering a medication, especially a narcotic, because he is not licensed to do so. If something were to happen to the patient Jerry could face a lawsuit, and we do not know if he has malpractice insurance, or if the doctor’s office has insurance for all employees. Jerry should simply do his job by taking a message and passing it along to the