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Medical Ethics

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Jerry McCall Ethics Case Study
Overview
This is an USA pseudo-case diverged from the following Medical and Ethics Textbook case study in Ch. 4 of Medical Law and Ethics that gives insight to medical – ethics and their applications (Fremgen, 2010, p. 85).
Jerry McCall is Dr. Williams’s office assistant. He has received professional training as both a medical assistant and an LPN. He is handling all the phone calls while the receptionist is at lunch. A patient calls and says he must have a prescription refill for Valium and that the provider, a friend, calls in the medication prior to any flights. This type of request happens often and in slightly different scenarios, but the outcome should remain the same to avoid ethical and legal issues. This paper will review the case study to help resolve the problem, the ethics involved, and the medical responsibility to refilling a prescription without provider authorization.

Qualified Medical Training
Understanding the definitions of a licensed practical nurse, LPN, and a medical assistant, MA is the first step to making a factual conclusion for this case study. Support staff to the provider cannot make decisions about medication refills for patients without a direct order from the provider. This action is outside the scope of practice for an LPN or MA. Licensed Practical Nurse

An LPN is a role in support of the nurse or RN, a registered Nurse usually in a skilled nursing setting such as a hospital or long-term care facility. As defined by the National Federation of Licensed Practical Nurses, NFLPN, an LPN “means the performance for compensation of authorized acts of nursing which utilize specialized knowledge and skills and which meet the health needs of people in a variety of settings under the direction of qualified health professionals” (National Federation of Licensed Practical Nurses, 2003). Each individual

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