Ethical and Policy Factors in Care Coordination
Introduction
Hello and welcome to this presentation on ethical and policy factors in care coordination. This presentation will mainly focus on nursing homes. Ethics in healthcare involves utilizing bioethical principles to view complex healthcare issues and recommend the best course of action for these issues (Rasoal et al., 2017). Ethics is important in healthcare since it guides nurses and healthcare professionals in their day-to-day activities. On the other hand, healthcare policies are principles and regulations that dictate the accessibility and delivery of healthcare services (Chinitz, 2019). Healthcare policies can exist at the national or state levels. In addition to this, they can be refined to the specific needs of a healthcare organization, such as a hospital or nursing home. These policies are enacted by the state or federal governments.
Importance of Ethics and Policy Factors in Care Coordination
Ethics and healthcare policies are important factors in care coordination, and these two elements interact with each other during care coordination. They help enhance interprofessional collaboration and communication, which are required for the success of healthcare services (Rasoal et al., 2017). Care coordination involves organizing healthcare activities and sharing healthcare information in a multidisciplinary healthcare team to deliver quality healthcare services (Hannigan et al., 2018). Health policies and ethical factors must thus be considered during care coordination. Care coordination enhances the implementation of patient-centred care, which is important in improving healthcare outcomes. Healthcare services are shifting to involving patients in the decision-making process. This presentation will analyze nursing homes as healthcare organizations that require care coordination to enhance the care continuum.
Nursing Homes and Care Coordination
A nursing home is a facility for individuals who are not required to be in the hospital but cannot receive care at their homes (Davidson & Szanton, 2020). Nursing homes have skilled nurses and nurse aides who work 24 hours to help the nursing home residents. Nursing homes care for the physically disabled, the elderly, the mentally ill, and other individuals who require close monitoring due to their special healthcare needs (Davidson & Szanton, 2020). Care coordination is important in nursing homes since many older patients are being transferred into nursing homes. The nurses working in the nursing homes must thus coordinate care with the primary facilities and primary physicians who initially cared for the patients. Care coordination in nursing will improve healthcare outcomes and patient satisfaction for individuals in nursing homes. This is because these patients may suffer from complex healthcare that needs the collaboration of different healthcare professionals. Nurses have a central role in care coordination (Davidson & Szanton, 2020). Nurses emphasize patient education, patient engagement, and technology use to enhance information sharing.
Government Policies Relevant to Care Coordination and Care Continuum
Many government policies affect care coordination. One such policy is the Affordable Care Act (ACA). ACA was enacted to reduce healthcare costs and increase access to healthcare services. This act requires US citizens to have health insurance, increasing access to healthcare services (Courtemanche et al., 2017). This act also promotes care coordination and implementation of preventive services such as breast cancer screening and patient education (Courtemanche et al., 2017). Another policy is Medicare is another policy that affects care coordination. Medicare is a federal health insurance policy for individuals aged above 65 years, young people with disabilities, and individuals with End-Stage Renal Disease. This policy has allowed many geriatric individuals to apply for insurance to help them meet their healthcare needs. Many nursing homes care for elderly individuals, and hence, Medicare is a policy that affects the coordination of care in nursing homes. Medicare Insurance Part A, in particular, affects nursing homes (Huffman & Upchurch, 2018)
Medicaid is a policy enacted in 1965 to offer insurance coverage to individuals who have low-income individuals. Medicaid covers pregnant mothers, children, elderly adults, and individuals with disabilities (Sharif et al., 2019). This program is funded by the state and federal governments. This policy has been critical in healthcare coverage and care coordination (Sharif et al., 2019). It is particularly important in nursing homes since most individuals who get services from nursing homes are elderly adults covered by this policy. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). HIPAA allows healthcare professionals to disclose protected patient information in patients’ medical information concerning treatment, care coordination, and case management (Cohen & Mello, 2018). HIPAA can thus allow nurses working in nursing homes to share patient information to help with the coordination of care in nursing homes. HIPAA does not limit disclosing patient information between healthcare professionals for care coordination, case management, and treatment. However, entities covered by HIPAA must obtain authorization from patients to disclose psychotherapy notes for purposes of care management (Cohen & Mello, 2018). Nurses in nursing homes must thus be aware of how this rule governs the sharing of patient information.
Policy Provisions That Raise Ethical Dilemma in Coordination of Care
Many healthcare policies cause healthcare dilemmas during care coordination. One such policy is the ACA, and this policy presents healthcare professionals with ethical dilemmas. There have been many debates concerning this act. The main purpose of ACA was to ensure that all Americans are insured and can access healthcare services. However, this act has raised income tax and punished individuals who have not purchased insurance (Courtemanche et al., 2017). The success of this act thus has a significant ethical disparity since it raises income tax and punishes individuals who have not paid for insurance. Individuals have a right to decide, and the principle of autonomy should be obeyed.
The second act is HIPAA. This act requires healthcare providers to request authorization before sharing protected health information related to mental health. However, patients in nursing homes may be mentally incapacitated and require a third party to authorize their protected health information. The primary role of HIPAA was to safeguard patient privacy and confidentiality, which is critical in healthcare (Cohen & Mello, 2018). The involvement of third parties may lead to a breach in the safety and privacy of patient information, which is the foundation of HIPAA.
Effect of Nurses’ Code of Ethics on Care Coordination.
The American Nurses Association has a Code of Ethics that guides nurses in providing quality healthcare services to their patients (Fowler, 2015). The provisions of this Code of Ethics are related to care coordination. The second provision requires nurses to respect human dignity (Fowler, 2015). This will help nurses to respect individuals when offering care to them. During care coordination, nurses must respect the dignity of the elderly in nursing homes. The fifth provision discusses the duty of nurses to self and others (Fowler, 2015). Nurses should offer healthcare services in a way that they would love to be offered to them. They must thus be central in care coordination and advance the quality of healthcare services by accomplishing their duties to themselves and others. Care coordination should be done to achieve healthcare provision as a duty to self and others. The eighth provision protects patients from manipulation or being denied healthcare services (Fowler, 2015). Nurses should avail healthcare services to all patients without fear or favour. This provision ensures that nurses are not biased when offering care to patients. This provision ensures that, during coordination, all individuals receive quality care regardless of their race or inclinations.
Social Determinants
Healthy People 2020 ensures the delivery of healthcare services in a conducive healthcare environment that meets the set standards. Social determinants are significant factors that can promote the achievement of the objectives of Healthy People 2020. Social determinants include economic stability, health and healthcare, education, neighbourhood and built environment, and social and community context (Healthy People.gov, 2021). In nursing homes, nurses must collaborate with other healthcare professionals to address the unique needs of their residents. These social determinants will also affect care coordination since care must be individualized.
Conclusion
Healthcare policies and ethics are critical in the provision of quality healthcare services. They enhance care coordination and care continuum in nursing homes. Nurses should be guided by healthcare policies to ensure they provide quality healthcare services. The policies include HIPAA, ACA, Medicare, and Medicaid. ANA Code of Ethics guides nurses during care coordination. The SDH in Healthy People should also be considered in care coordination. Thank you for being part of this presentation.
References
Chinitz, D. (2019). The more health policies change, the more they change in the same way. Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13584-019-0308-6
Cohen, I. G., & Mello, M. M. (2018). HIPAA and protecting health information in the 21st century. JAMA, 320(3), 231. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.5630
Courtemanche, C., Marton, J., Ukert, B., Yelowitz, A., & Zapata, D. (2017). Early effects of the Affordable Care Act on health care access, risky health behaviours, and self-assessed health. https://doi.org/10.3386/w23269
Davidson, P. M., & Szanton, S. L. (2020). Nursing homes and COVID‐19: We can and should do better. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 29(15-16), 2758-2759. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.15297
Fowler, M. D. (2015). Guide to the code of ethics for nurses: With interpretive statements: Development, interpretation, and application.
Hannigan, B., Simpson, A., Coffey, M., Barlow, S., & Jones, A. (2018). Care coordination as imagined, care coordination as done: Findings from a cross-national mental health systems study. International Journal of Integrated Care, 18(3). https://doi.org/10.5334/ijic.3978
Healthy People.gov. (2021). Social determinants of health | Healthy people 2020. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/social-determinants-health/interventions-resources
Huffman, K. F., & Upchurch, G. (2018). The health of older Americans: A primer on Medicare and a local perspective. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 66(1), 25-32. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.15227
Rasoal, D., Skovdahl, K., Gifford, M., & Kihlgren, A. (2017). Clinical ethics support for healthcare personnel: An integrative literature review. HEC Forum, 29(4), 313-346. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10730-017-9325-4
Sharif, M. Z., Samari, G., & Alcalá, H. E. (2019). Variations in access to care after the Affordable Care Act among different immigrant groups. Journal of Community Health, 45(1), 30-40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-019-00708-8
ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE
We’ll write everything from scratch
Question 
Select a community organization or group that you feel would be interested in learning about ethical and policy issues that affect the coordination of care. Then, develop and record a 10-12-slide, 20-minute presentation with audio intended for that audience. Create a detailed narrative script or speaker notes for your presentation, 4-5 pages in length.
Ethical and Policy Factors in Care Coordination
Introduction
As coordinators of care, nurses must be aware of the code of ethics for nurses and health policy issues that affect the coordination of care within the context of the community. To help patients navigate the continuum of care, nurses must be proficient at interpreting and applying the code of ethics for nurses and health policy, specifically, the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Being knowledgeable about ethical and policy issues helps ensure that care coordinators are upholding ethical standards and navigating policy issues that affect patient care.
This assessment provides an opportunity for you to develop a presentation for a local community organization of your choice, which provides an overview of ethical standards and relevant policy issues that affect the coordination of care. Completing this assessment will strengthen your understanding of ethical issues and policies related to the coordination and continuum of care and will empower you to be a stronger advocate and nursing professional.
It would be an excellent choice to complete the Vila Health: Ethical Decision-Making activity prior to developing the presentation. The activity provides a helpful update on the ethical principles that will help with the success of this assessment.
Preparation
Your nurse manager at the community care centre is well-connected and frequently speaks to a variety of community organizations and groups. She has noticed the good work you are doing in your new care coordination role and respects your speaking and presentation skills. Consequently, she thought that an opportunity to speak publicly about contemporary issues in care coordination would be beneficial for your career and has suggested reaching out to a community organization or support group to gauge their interest in hearing from you as a care centre representative on a topic of interest to both you and your prospective audience.
You have agreed that this is a good idea and have decided to research a community organization or support group that might be interested in learning about ethical and policy issues related to the coordination of care. Your manager has suggested the following community organizations and support groups but acknowledges that the choice is yours.
Homeless shelters.
Local religious groups.
Nursing homes.
Local community organizations (Rotary Club or Kiwanis Club).
To prepare for this assessment, you may wish to:
Research your selected community organization or support group.
Review the Code of Ethics for Nurses With Interpretive Statements and associated health policy issues, specifically the ACA.
Review the assessment instructions and scoring guide to ensure you understand the work you will be asked to complete.
Allocate sufficient time to rehearse your presentation before recording the final version for submission.
Note: Remember that you can submit all or a portion of your draft presentation to Smarthinking Tutoring for feedback before you submit the final version for this assessment. If you plan on using this free service, be mindful of the turnaround time of 24-48 hours for receiving feedback.
Recording Equipment Setup and Testing
Check that your audio speaker and PowerPoint software are working properly. You can record audio directly to your slides using PowerPoint or other presentation software.
Note: Technical support about the use of PowerPoint, including voice recording and speaker notes, can be found on Campus’s Microsoft Office Software page.
If using Kaltura, refer to the Using Kaltura tutorial for directions on recording and uploading your presentation in the courtroom.
Note: If you require the use of assistive technology or alternative communication methods to participate in this activity, please contact DisabilityServices@capella.edu to request accommodations.
Instructions
For this assessment:
Choose the community organization or support group that you plan to address.
Develop a PowerPoint with typed speaker notes (the script for your voice recording) and audio voice-over recording intended for that audience. Video is not required.
Note: PowerPoint has a feature to type the speaker notes directly into the presentation. You are encouraged to use that feature or you may choose to submit a separate document. See Microsoft Office Software for technical support about the use of PowerPoint, including voice recording and speaker notes.
For this assessment, develop your presentation slides and speaker notes, then record your presentation. You are not required to deliver your presentation to an actual audience.
Presentation Format and Length
You may use PowerPoint (recommended) or other suitable presentation software to create your slides and add your voice-over. If you elect to use an application other than PowerPoint, check with your faculty to avoid potential file compatibility issues.
Be sure that your slide deck includes the following slides:
Title slide.
Presentation title.
Your name.
Date.
Course number and title.
References (at the end of your presentation).
Your slide deck should consist of 10-12 slides, not including a title and references slide with typed speaker notes and audio voice-over. Your presentation should not exceed 20 minutes.
Create a detailed narrative script for your presentation, approximately 4-5 pages in length.
Supporting Evidence
Cite 3-5 credible sources from peer-reviewed journals or professional industry publications to support your presentation. Include your source citations on a references page appended to your narrative script.
Grading Requirements
The requirements outlined below correspond to the grading criteria in the Ethical and Policy Factors in Care Coordination Scoring Guide, so be sure to address each point. Read the performance-level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work will be assessed.
Explain how governmental policies related to the health and/or safety of the community affect the coordination of care.
Provide examples of a specific policy affecting the organization or group.
Refer to the assessment resources for help in locating relevant policies.
Be sure influential policies include the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA).
Identify national, state, and local policy provisions that raise ethical questions or dilemmas for care coordination.
What are the implications and consequences of specific policy provisions?
What evidence do you have to support your conclusions?
Assess the impact of the code of ethics for nurses on the coordination and continuum of care.
Consider the factors that contribute to health, health disparities, and access to services.
Consider the social determinants of health identified in Healthy People 2020 as a framework for your assessment.
Provide evidence to support your conclusions.
Communicate key ethical and policy issues in a presentation affecting the coordination and continuum of care for a selected community organization or support group. Either speaker notes or audio voice-over are included for a proficient score; both speaker notes and the audio voice-over are included for a distinguished score.
Present a concise overview.
Support your main points and conclusions with relevant and credible evidence.
Additional Requirements
Before submitting your assessment, proofread your presentation slides, and speaker notes to minimize errors that could distract readers and make it more difficult for them to focus on the substance of your presentation.
Portfolio Prompt: Save your presentation to your ePortfolio. Submissions to the ePortfolio will be part of your final Capstone course.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the course competencies through the following assessment scoring guide criteria:
Competency 4: Defend decisions based on the code of ethics for nursing.
Assess the impact of the code of ethics for nurses on the coordination and continuum of care.
Competency 5: Explain how healthcare policies affect patient-centered care.
Explain how governmental policies related to the health and/or safety of a community affect the coordination of care.
Identify national, state, and local policy provisions that raise ethical questions or dilemmas for care coordination.
Competency 6: Apply professional, scholarly communication strategies to lead patient-centered care.
Communicate key ethical and policy issues in a presentation affecting the coordination and continuum of care for a selected community organization or support group. Either speaker notes, or audio voice-over is included.