How To Analyze An Ethical Dilemma

Analyzing an Ethical Decision

Ethical decision making is part of the core competencies for an advanced provider and will contribute to professional development (Thomas et al., 2012). This paper will examine an ethical dilemma and the related laws/regulations. An outline of the decision-making process will be described that can be applied to the dilemma.

Ethical Issue: Patient Privacy and Patient Safety

According to Kadooka, Okita, and Asai (2016), a young Japanese girl was killed by a sixteen-year-old classmate. The murderer had been seeing a psychiatrist and made threats that she wanted to kill someone that contained explicit details to a psychiatrist. The child's step-mother observed bizarre behavior and wanted to have her admitted to the hospital. Although, there were no beds available. The psychiatrist who had critical pieces of mental health information called officials and did not disclose the girl's name to protect her privacy. Ultimately, the girl carried out her brutal threats, and she murdered a classmate.

Moral and Ethical Dilemmas

The ethical dilemma was the disclosure of protected patient information when there was a risk of harm to others. The principle of beneficence related to the safety of others and a rule of confidentially led to conflict (Hamric, Hanson, Tracy, & O'Grady, 2014). Furthermore, the Code of Ethics for

In the state of Michigan under the Mental Health Code, Act 258 of 1974, a provider can disclose protected health information if they feel that the information can lead to "substantial probability of harm to the recipient or other individuals" (Michigan Legislature, 2017). However, the word feel is subjective. Therefore, a decision to disclose protected patient information requires a decision-making process that is ethically sound and