Confidentiality and HIPAA

Ethical Dilemma Scenario

Nurse Jones works at Sunny Hospital, in

Nebraska. She also works occasional shifts

at Paris Lights, a residential Intensive Care

facility for individuals with developmental

disabilities (ICF-MR).

While working her shift at Sunny Hospital

she learns that Terrence Blue, a Direct Care

Worker at Paris Lights, has been admitted

to her floor and is diagnosed with

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

(MRSA).

MRSA is a bacterium responsible for several

difficult-to-treat infections in humans because the bacterium has a strong resistance to most antibiotics and is very difficult to treat.

MRSA is very concerning in settings where patients have open wounds, invasive devices, and/or weakened immune systems as these patients are at greater risk of infection than the general public. In certain patients, a MRSA infection can prove fatal.

Nurse Jones is aware that one of the residents at

Paris Lights where Terrence works [Barry Black] has a very weakened immune system, and any exposure to MRSA could be dangerous.

Terrence is discharged from the hospital and given a special course of antibiotics to treat his condition. When Nurse Jones arrives at her next shift at Paris Lights about a day after Terrence’s discharge from the hospital, she notices from the client treatment records that Terrence has been working with Barry Black over the past two week

Using the provided Scenario, answer the following questions in APA essay format. Use your readings, state (Arkansas)/ federal regulations and peer-reviewed scholarly or professional resources to support your answers.

1. Is Nurse Jones’ disclosure to Paris Lights of

Terrence’s condition permitted and/or required by

state or federal law?

2. If you have determined that Ms. Jones cannot

disclose Terrence’s condition legally, is there

anything else Nurse Jones can do regarding the

information about Terrence’s condition?