CASPer Scenario for Discussion #3

[PrepMatch]

A wealthy donor had just donated $5 Million dollars to the local hospital last week. Today, her father comes to the emergency room to be treated for a broken hip.

1. Should the hospital treat the father in a different matter than other patients?
2. One of the emergency room nurses decided to go out of her way to make sure the patient is comfortable. Is she acting in an unethical manner?
3. How can hospitals and other public institutions reward donors in a manner that is ethical?

Discuss below!

(This scenario is from PrepMatch.com, the free peer-to-peer CASPer preparation platform that allows you to practice hundreds of scenarios for free. PrepMatch is a non-profit partnered up with the SDN that aims to make the admission process more equitable)

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[cocacola162004]

The sign of charity from the donor is an act of praise by itself. That being said, if charity is tied to expectations from the recipiet it does not qualify as charitbale donation anymore.
1) Treating the father differently just because of his "donation", changes his charitable deeds to bribery. From the given scenario i surmise thats not his intention.
2) the nurses manners would actualy be comendable, given they did not interfere with her duties or the care of her patients. She is rewarding a charitable act with another.
3) By recognizing their efforts/donation in public manner would be one way of ethicaly rewarding a donor. Given that, good profile is something the donor is interested in. But compromising on the ethics or operations of the hospital should be avoided at all cost.

 

[xDNA]

A wealthy donor had just donated $5 Million dollars to the local hospital last week. Today, her father comes to the emergency room to be treated for a broken hip.

1. Should the hospital treat the father in a different matter than other patients?
2. One of the emergency room nurses decided to go out of her way to make sure the patient is comfortable. Is she acting in an unethical manner?
3. How can hospitals and other public institutions reward donors in a manner that is ethical?

Discuss below!

(This scenario is from PrepMatch.com, the free peer-to-peer CASPer preparation platform that allows you to practice hundreds of scenarios for free. PrepMatch is a non-profit partnered up with the SDN that aims to make the admission process more equitable)

1. No, the father should not be treated in any manner differently than other patients. Within healthcare it is important to treat all patients with the same level of respect, autonomy, and veracity.

2. No, the nurse is not acting unethical. It is important to "assume positive intent". Just because the nurse is going out her way for the patient could have nothing to do with who the patient is, but alternatively could just be the personality of the nurse. This nurse could simply be exemplary and go above and beyond for all her patients to ensure their comfort.

3. I believe the appropriate reward for large donors that is ethical is naming them on the hospital. "John Doe's Children Hospital", or by giving them a plaque hung within the halls of the hospital acknowledging their generous contributions.

 

[nidgehog]

1. In an ideal scenario, the father should not be treated differently as this is a hospital where every patient deserves the same attention and respect. The foundation of the medical system is built upon that.

2. If she recognizes who he is and goes out of her way for only him, then that is unethical as she is not doing it for others as well. If the nurse is generally going out of her way to help all her patients, then it is not unethical. Just because the nurse is going above and beyond, does not mean that she is unethical. What matters is the actions she did to other patients around her.

3. It is a difficulty position for the hospital as they have the responibility to treat and heal all their patients with equal and full care. I believe the hosptial cannot provide preferintial treatment to the donor over other patients. However, the hospital can possibly provide free insurance coverage for the donor or changing the name of a hospital floor or wing in the name of the donor, or dedicating a room to their name or their family's name so that everyone acknowledge's their generous contribution to health

 

[Proudfather94]

A wealthy donor had just donated $5 Million dollars to the local hospital last week. Today, her father comes to the emergency room to be treated for a broken hip.

1. Should the hospital treat the father in a different matter than other patients?
2. One of the emergency room nurses decided to go out of her way to make sure the patient is comfortable. Is she acting in an unethical manner?
3. How can hospitals and other public institutions reward donors in a manner that is ethical?

Discuss below!

(This scenario is from PrepMatch.com, the free peer-to-peer CASPer preparation platform that allows you to practice hundreds of scenarios for free. PrepMatch is a non-profit partnered up with the SDN that aims to make the admission process more equitable)

I'll say stuff like this happens on the regular from personal experience, especially if the patient has a family member that works at the hospital. We call them vips. It's unethical but money rules the world, and if you stand up to them and got fired who's going to take care of the patients?

 

[FlowRate]

Old head dropping in just curious about these new things you all are having to do. Playing devil's advocate, if the nurse is going out of her way because he's a donor but otherwise continues to provide a high standard of care to all of her other patients, what is unethical about that? What do the test question writers imagine a nurse in the ED "going out of her way to make sure the patient is comfortable" is actually doing? Obviously unethical if she's sneaking him some extra dilaudid but the most likely scenario is that the nurse drops by one or two more times to ask "you good?" and maybe fluff a pillow (reposition pt) or grab a fresh warm blanket.

 

[deleted1103055]

Answer as you see fit, then incorporate the lyrics of Steve Miller Band 1976 hit song “Take the Money & Run” into your answer to demonstrate creativity.

oh heck, its a great song!

 

[deleted1100659]

It’s not unethical to be extra nice to a patient regardless of whether they’re a donor or not; it would be unethical to base your standard of care off of social status. I don’t think you can ever condemn being extra nice to someone, it’s how you treat those you aren’t extra nice to, and if you hold every patient to the same standard of care.

 

[labratchronicles]

Every person who needs medical help derives their treatment - more importantly the relationship with a physician - from their unique qualities. Unfortunately, the amount of money the person has should have no place in the world, or in forming our most essential judgments about character and identity. Part of medicine, to me, is tailoring a treatment to an individual with no respect to the material possessions of the patient. For instance, working with the housing-insecure might present that opportunity. In this situation, I believe it would be a bad choice to alter treatment in any positive or negative way based on the hefty donation.





If I am the attending, and it is clear that this patient is receiving preferential treatment because of the donation, I would address that one-one-one and with my entire team. While I would not make it clear that anybody should go out of there way from the talk, it would be my message, to make sure people treat all patients equally. The ethics of this are clear-cut - unconditional positive regard is given to all patients.





I think that putting names on buildings, honoring their service through benefits or ceremonies, and ensuring that policies are in place that incentivize acts of kindness should exist sufficiently to encourage generosity. This should come with disincentivized policies that ensure healthcare workers recognize that treating patients with preference bears no special reward in theory and practice.