DHC NEW CH 8

career development

An organized planning method used to form an individual's work identity.

professionalism

The conduct, character, skill, and judgment of a trained person.

medical terminology

The language used in medicine that allows healthcare professionals to communicate with each other.

anatomy

The structure of organisms and their parts.

physiology

How organisms and their parts carry out the normal physical functions that allow them to exist.

infection control

Deals with preventing the spread of healthcare-associated infections.

safety

Refers to applying procedures and protocols to reduce the potential for bodily injury.

medical math

Math courses that are common across the healthcare professions.

healthy behavior

An action taken to attain, maintain, or regain good health and prevent illness.

communication

The sharing of information between two or more people as a way to convey meaning.

health record

An ordered set of documents or a collection of data that contains a complete and accurate description of a patient's history, condition, diagnostic and therapeutic treatment, and results of treatment.

documentation

The process of entering descriptions. The documentation process may consist of traditional paper, an electronic health record, or a hybrid of both.

healthcare delivery systems

Governmental, non-profit, for-profit, public, and private. Each of these systems influences how care is delivered by healthcare providers and paid for by insurers, the government, and patients.

professional

A person with specialized learning who is engaged in a specific activity as an occupation.

critical feature of professionalism

The achievement of a high level of skill in the discipline in which the healthcare provider is trained.

active listening skills

Focusing on what the speaker is saying.

verbal communication

Essential to the delivery of high-quality patient care because patients must be able to address their health complaints and concerns with healthcare providers.

new technology skills

Basic computer concepts, terminology, and skills and what is considered appropriate use of social media and email in the healthcare workplace.

signs of a professional attitude

Placing the patient's welfare first and treating everyone with common courtesy.

mechanisms for continuing education

Understanding the need and methods for ongoing learning to stay updated in one's field.

technical skills in healthcare

Procedures for measuring and recording vital signs, first aid, CPR, using an AED, and clearing a foreign body airway obstruction.

importance of professional manners

Influences their opportunities for advancement.

common healthy behaviors

Weight control, exercise, and good sleep habits.

health literacy presentations

May take the form of graphs, narratives, infographics, or other means.

what anatomy and physiology courses provide

A comprehensive understanding of how the human body works and allows professionals to describe diseases and disorders of each body system.

what happens once an infection is present

Focus rests on monitoring its spread in the healthcare setting and managing the outbreak.

Professionalism

Placing the patient's welfare first and treating everyone with common courtesy.

Essential approach to delivering health care

Maintaining a healthy balance between caring for patients without becoming emotionally attached.

Importance of professional manners

Because the professional manner in which healthcare providers conduct themselves on the job also influences their opportunities for advancement.

Conflicts

Serious disagreements or arguments.

Reasons for conflicts

Because of personality clashes; differences in culture, values, or work style; competition between people; or a host of other reasons.

Addressing conflicts

In a calm manner, actively listening to a coworker's concerns, defining the essence or cause of the conflict, and finding areas of agreement can go a long way to resolving a conflict and demonstrating professionalism.

Ethics

The formal study of moral choices that conform to the standards of conduct. It means making judgements between right and wrong or listening to one's conscience.

Code of ethics

A written list of a profession's values and standards of conduct which promote the welfare of patients and the delivery of high-quality patient care.

Hippocratic Oath

An ethical code typically taken by physicians who are about to start their medical practice. This oath contains many of the values that form the basis for codes of ethics of many professional healthcare associations; acting to benefit the patient, refusing to do harm to patients, and maintaining patient confidence.

Disparagement

Belittling or criticizing the skills, knowledge, or qualifications of another professional.

Conflict of interest

A clash between an individual's selfish interests and his or her obligations to an organization, group, or person.

Adverse incident response

The healthcare provider may create a report that documents the circumstances of the adverse incident, including the condition of the subject and observations of the incident.

Ethical practice

Addresses cultural, societal, and ethnic diversity.

Confidentiality

The healthcare professional's obligation to maintain patient information in a manner that will not permit dissemination beyond the healthcare provider.

Consequences of breaching confidentiality

They not only damage their relationship with the patient, but they may also violate the law and professional requirements.

Federal regulations on confidentiality

Regulations issued pursuant to the HIPAA establish many confidentiality restrictions, identify what constitutes improper disclosure of protected health information, and specify fines and other penalties that may be imposed if confidentiality is violated.

Regulatory and licensing bodies

They have similar requirements as the federal government and may also impose discipline, including removal of licenses to practice in the healthcare field.

Professional organizations' handling of confidentiality breaches

Discipline, including expulsion, from those associations for violating patient confidentiality.

Healthcare team

A variety of health personnel, each with a specialized function.

Examples of health team members

Doctors, nurses, dietitians, therapists, and other direct-care providers.

Attributes of health team members

Diverse knowledge, skills and talents.

Types of health teams

Functional and patient-centered.

Functional health teams

They take care of specific problems. Examples include a mental health team or a coronary care team.

Patient-centered health teams

They include patients and their families who are involved in making healthcare decisions together with their doctor and other healthcare professionals.

Healthcare team focusing on delivery, costs, quality, and availability

Composed of public health agents, hospital administrators, health information managers, health educators, sanitarians, and others.

Career development legal issues

Obtaining the legal right to practice in a particular health profession and staying out of trouble that may result in a lawsuit.

Licensing

A right conferred by a governmental body to practice an occupation or provide a service.

Accreditation

The process by which an external entity reviews an organization or program of study to determine if the organization or program meets certain predetermined standards.

Certification

The action or process of providing an individual with an official document attesting to her or her status or level of achievement. Certification is conferred by private organizations and not state governmental bodies.

Malpractice

Professional misconduct.

Negligence

A form of malpractice. Someone failing to do something a reasonably prudent person would do in the same or similar situation or, alternatively, doing something that a reasonably prudent person would not do in the same or a similar situation.

Examples of negligence

There are 4 elements of negligence: Duty of care, Breach of duty of care, Causation (harm), Damages.

Negligence with intent to cause harm

A doctor performing a mastectomy when a patient didn't agree to it.

Social media in malpractice lawsuits

A healthcare professional may give advice online and give the wrong information to a person seeking advice.

Frequently alleged legal issues in healthcare

Fraud and abuse.

Fraud

The intentional deception of another person to that person's detriment.

Abuse

A pattern of practices or customs that are unsound or inconsistent with ethical business, fiscal, or healthcare practices or customs.

Examples of fraud or abuse

Misrepresentation in the marketing of pharmaceuticals and failure to submit medical device reports to the Food and Drug Administration.

Continuing education

The process by which a professional seeks recurrent learning activities and training beyond that required for the initial license or certificate.

Satisfying continuing education requirements

Take a degree credit course, pursue non-degree career training, engage in sponsored workforce training or experiential learning, or participate in self-directed learning.

Authority on continuing education needs

The licensing board or professional association.

Career development continuum

It extends beyond the common core of knowledge needed initially to enter into a healthcare profession.