: Analyzing An Ethical Decision

The ethical issue compared to the State Health Laws and Regulations In Maryland, obligation of healthcare provider to confidentiality prohibits them from disclosing information and data the client's case without permission (Blightman, Griffiths & Danbury, 2014). Healthcare providers should also take precautions to make sure that only authorized access to client information occurs. As defined by the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act of 1997 (HIPAA), every organization is expected to have policies put in place to protect the privacy of the clients’ electronic information and include a proper procedures for the computer access and security (Beltran-Aroca et al. 2016). The process of ethical decision making In deciding this ethical situation, I will take six basic steps. The first step is finding the facts in the situation by establishing why the nurse viewed the medical records. The second step is decided if the situation is legal issue or ethical issues by considering who has been harmed by the action or decision. That is, after accessing the client’s record, was anyone affected? The third step is to identify options and consequences. These may include sacking the nurses, filing a lawsuit against him or using other disciplinary action such as suspension and advising the nurse on his obligation and duty to observe client confidentiality