The Influence of Ethical Issues on Information Technology Usage
PAPER 2 RUBRIX
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For this Application Assignment, write a 3- to 4-page paper addressing legal, regulatory, and ethical issues of information systems in nursing. Use the headings below for each section. Use a minimum of four references from the professional nursing literature in the assigned course readings and other references in the Walden Library. If they are relevant, you may use one or two professional web sites in addition to the literature references.
Begin this paper with a brief paragraph that provides an overview of the assignment and its purpose. There is no separate heading for this paragraph; the heading for this paragraph is the same as the title of the paper. This paragraph will be about 2-3 sentences. The last sentence in this paragraph is a sentence that begins "The purpose of this paper is to ¨. This paragraph is worth 20 points.
Importance of ethical, legal, and regulatory issues and information technology - 40 points
Discuss at least two reasons for the importance of these areas in using information technology in nursing and health care. This section is 2 paragraphs.
Ethical issues and using information systems in nursing - 40 points
Discuss at least two ethical issues related to adopting and using information systems in nursing. This section is 2 paragraphs.
Legislation and information systems - 40 points
Describe the role of legislation in the regulation and adoption of information systems in nursing and health care. This section is 1-2 paragraphs.
Impact of specific legislation - 40 points
Explain the impact and implications of HIPAA and the Veterans Benefits Health Care and Information Technology Act on patient-care practices. This section is 1- 2 paragraphs.
Summary - 20 points
End the paper with a one-paragraph summary of the main points of the paper.
Format/style
Proofread the paper as described in the tips for success in this course and correct any typos, grammar, spelling, punctuation, syntax, or APA format errors before submitting your paper in the Dropbox. Up to 40 points can be deducted from the grade for this assignment for these types of errors, or for not using at least the minimum number of required references.
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The Influence of Ethical Issues on Information Technology Usage
In today’s society, health care is ever evolving and changing. Videoconferencing, computer-based patient records, telehealth, and electronic mail are only some of the practices which have become very widespread nowadays in the delivery of health care. Even though electronic records and the use of information technology in health care and nursing have several benefits, ethical concerns have been raised, and legal and regulatory issues exist. The purpose of this paper is to provide a discussion of the ethical, legal, and regulatory issues of information systems in nursing and health care.
Importance of Ethical, Legal, and Regulatory Issues and IT
Ethical, legal, and regulatory issues are of major importance in information technology in nursing and health care. The first reason for the importance of these issues pertains to ethics issues. Ethics guides behaviour of nurses with conceptual and moral beliefs in their usage of IT resources in health care organizations (Simpson, 2006). Ethics basically comprises moral choices that people make in relation to the rest of the community, rules that govern members of a profession, and standards of acceptable behaviour. Ethical issues mainly relate to privacy and safety. The wide-ranging issues pertaining to electronic information systems consist of access to and control of information, misuse and privacy of data. Ethical consideration in how information is utilized in nursing and health care is significant (Gerdin, Tallberg & Wainwright, 2011).
Secondly, legal structures and laws are necessary to cover the use of IT and to offer protection to users. In essence, new legal and ethical decisions in nursing and health care are necessary for balancing the rights and needs of everyone. The third reason is about the importance of regulatory issues. Regulations are important as regards the use of IT since they tell the nursing professionals and other health care workers how to behave and what they can actually anticipate in case they do not behave appropriately. In essence, the usage of IT and information systems has to comply with the stipulated laws, regulations, and standards (Simpson, 2005).
Ethical Issues and Using Information Systems in Nursing
When it comes to IT, the question is essentially to know or not to know. In the cyberworld of today, the extensive, accessible, and valuable information regarding patients, their diagnosis as well as treatment poses vital questions for nursing staff regarding trust, integrity, and ethics (Simpson, 2006). The first ethical issue is privacy. The main challenge to nursing today is essentially the inescapable collision of technological advancement and individual privacy. Information without a doubt has moral implications in health care. Nurses have to manage an everyday equation: inapt disclosure of patient information amounts to a breach of confidentiality. Moreover, getting patient information and having incomplete or inaccurate data may cause compromised patient safety or medical error (Simpson, 2006).
The second ethical issue is patient safety. Personal information of patients in the hands of third parties could do harm, and this brings about questions on 2 grounds: (i) the deontological philosophy which states that no usage of information is ethically justified if it results in any avoidable harm whatsoever. (ii) The consequential approach which says that no usage of information is morally justified if it produces more harm than good to people (Simpson, 2006). With her directive that a health care organization’s first requirement is to do the patients no harm, Florence Nightingale actually set the standard. Given that information could either prevent or create harm to the patient, nursing staffs are morally bound to manage it (Hughes, 2008).
Legislation and Information Systems
Legislation plays an imperative role in both the regulation and adoption ...