Ethical Considerations for Home Care Personnel in the Digital Age (2024)

1. What is Meant by the Terms “Ethics” and “Digital Age?”

There are several definitions of the term “digital age” as well as differing understandings of the terms "ethics" and "ethical principles," depending on the field to which they are applied. After a general overview of the terms digital age, ethics, and ethical principles, this chapter will focus on the definitions used for the purposes of this course, the ethical principles of greatest concern in home care, and ethical leadership.

2. How Might Confidentiality Be Compromised in Home Care?

Confidentiality is an often discussed issue in health care. Communication technology continues to advance, which can put respect for patient privacy at risk, e.g., where and how patient information can be shared. How does one know they are keeping patient information confidential? This chapter identifies potential scenarios when confidentiality could be compromised in the delivery of home care services.

3. How Might Autonomy of Home Care Personnel be Impacted by the Digital Age?

Individual rights have long been considered important in American society. Yet, there is an inherent struggle between exercising those individual rights and when those rights negatively impact the lives of others. Additionally, the rise of social media has blurred the lines about which personal information is appropriate to share and with whom the information is shared. This chapter takes a look at individual expressions of thoughts and feelings by home care personnel and their potential impact on the person and on the rights and privacy of those under their care.

4. What is the Role of Veracity (Telling the Truth) in Home Care?

Trust is needed for an effective relationship between a patient and care provider. One might argue that patients need to trust the information given to them in order to follow the plan of care. This chapter will explore actions and behaviors that can be taken by home care personnel to establish and nurture trusting relationships.

5. Emerging Technological Advances that Could Pose Ethical Challenges for Home Care

We’ve gone from the industrial age to the digital age, so what is coming next? The future holds many changes as new technologies develop. What might these changes be and how might they impact home care? What will the challenges be in trying to determine what the right thing is to do in a given situation? This chapter will discuss selected emerging technological advances, their potential use in home care, and ethical challenges that might accompany their use.