Newport Hospital
Ethical Business and
Professional Behavior Code
Sections:
Newport Hospital's board of trustees, senior management, medical executive
committee and ethics committee have established this statement of organization
ethics in recognition of the hospital's responsibility to patients, staff,
physicians and the community we serve.
The statement is designed to provide an ethical framework for decision
making, personal and corporate behavior, strategic planning, and other actions
associated with patient care, business and employee practices.
[Other sections]
It is the responsibility of every person associated with Newport
Hospital—governing board members, medical staff, administration, management,
employees, remote medical office staff, volunteers and students—to act in a
manner that is consistent with this ethics statement and its supporting
policies.
It is the responsibility of the board and senior management to be
consistent in their actions, to develop and maintain an organizational climate
that supports ethical decision making and to focus attention on ethics in the
everyday life of the organization.
The integrity of Newport Hospital is diminished when any of these standards
is violated. The hospital expects every individual associated with the
Hospital to report any violation of this ethics statement to the appropriate
manager, administrator, the board of trustees or the Ethics
Committee. When
possible and appropriate, confidentiality will be maintained.
The Ethics Committee is available for consultation regarding any questions
or concerns. Access to the committee is through any committee member.
[Other sections]
All persons who work for or provide services to Newport Hospital are
expected to adhere to ethical standards and to promote ethical behavior
consistent with these standards. All actions should be judged by considering
if the action is right, fair and in accordance with applicable laws and
regulations. The Hospital's Statement of Values must be adhered to in all
cases
[Other sections]
Statement of Values:
- Respect and dignity of the individual
- Excellence
-
Honesty and fairness
- Stewardship of resources
Those individuals whose behavior is found to violate ethical standards will
he appropriately counseled, disciplined or penalized.
[Other sections]
All people, including patients and their representatives, are to be treated
fairly and with dignity, courtesy and respect. All persons are entitled to
work in/to be cared for in an environment that is free of verbal, physical and
sexual harassment, as well as free from discrimination and favoritism. To the
extent that they are consistent with Newport Hospital's operational policies,
do not harm others or interfere with treatment, all persons' religious
beliefs, personal and spiritual values and cultural practices may be expressed
and shall be respected. Further, all staff should ensure that the
psychological, social, spiritual, educational, cultural and physical needs of
patients and their families arc respected and should promote staff sensitivity
to the full range of these needs.
[Other sections]
Newport Hospital provides care, to the full extent of its capabilities, to
all people who need emergency care and to all residents of Newport County who
need care without regard to the ability to pay. All patients are afforded a
uniform standard of care throughout the organization and its remote medical
offices. Only patients who request to be transferred, or whose specific
condition or illness cannot be safely treated at Newport Hospital, are
transferred to another facility which has agreed in advance to accept the
patient. Patients will be discharged from Newport Hospital when, in the
opinion of the attending physician, the patient's medical needs no longer
require a hospital level of care, regardless of the status of or lade of
insurance coverage.
[Other sections]
Each patients autonomy and right to make decisions about his or her medical
care or to refuse treatment shall be respected. The patient and/or the
patients representative shall be given the information necessary to make
informed decisions about medical care including the potential benefits and
drawbacks of proposed treatments or procedures, the potential problems related
to recuperation, the likelihood of success, the possible results of
non-treatment, and any significant alternatives. To the extent possible,
patients and/or their families will participate in decisions regarding care,
without undue influence, especially care at the end of life. All caregivers
will constantly seek to understand and respect the patients and the family's
objectives for care. The patient's right to exclude any or all family
members from participating in his or her care decisions will be respected,
Bach patients dignity and positive self-regard will be preserved.
No patients, including those in units with relatively long lengths of
stays, will be required to work or perform tasks for the organization other
than voluntarily participating in their personal care or those activities
which are an integral part of their therapeutic plan of care.
[Other sections]
Clinical decisions (including tests, treatments and other interventions)
will be made with integrity and in accordance with these ethical standards.
Such decisions will be based on identified patient health care needs
regardless of how Newport Hospital compensates or shares financial risk with
its leaders, managers, clinical staff, and licensed independent practitioners.
[Other sections]
All persons are responsible for ensuring the confidentiality of health care
information consistent with sound medical practice and the delivery of health
care by a multidisciplinary team of professionals.
Sensitive information concerning personnel and management issues and
hospital business will be maintained in the strictest confidence and utilized
only by those individuals authorized to review and act upon such information.
[Other sections]
Should conflict arise among those who participate in hospital and patient
care decisions, whether this conflict is between members of administration,
medical staff, employees, the governing body, or between caregivers and the
patient, every effort will be made to resolve the conflict fairly and
objectively. In cases where mutual satisfaction cannot be achieved, the
patient representative, the administrator-on-call, social worker or the
clergy, as appropriate, will be involved to oversee resolution of the conflict
if the conflict involves ethical issues, assistance from the hospital's ethics
committee may be requested via the vice president of nursing and patient care
services or his/her designee.
[Other sections]
All members of the health care team are responsible for ensuring that
patients have access to information about the protective services they may
require including guardianship and advocacy services, conservatorship and
child or adult protective services. The social work department maintains lists
of names, addresses and telephone numbers of pertinent state client advocacy
groups including information regarding the patient's right to file a
complaint with the Rhode Island Department of Health if he or she has a
concern about patient abuse, neglect or about misappropriation of a patient's
property in the facility.
[Other sections]
Accurate and prompt billing practices by the hospital will be maintained.
All bills will reflect services actually provided and include dates of
service. Bills for outpatient services will be itemized. Prompt assistance
will be provided to patients and other payers in answering questions about
charges. Every effort will be made to attempt to resolve questions and
objections fairly and to the satisfaction of the patient while considering the
best interests of the hospital and Lifespan as a whole. Such questions or
objections will be handled professionally without real or perceived
harassment.
[Other sections]
All of Newport Hospital's communication, including disclosure of
information, shall be clear, accurate and sufficiently complete so that such
communication is not misleading. Health care advertising and marketing
materials shall be truthful and fairly and accurately represent Newport
Hospital, its capabilities and its level of licensure and accreditation.
Advertisements will be judged for their frankness, clarity and demonstrable
truths.
[Other sections]
In instances where there is the potential for competition between the
hospital and individual physicians, the hospital will be guided by what is
best for the patient and the community and secondarily by what is best for the
hospital and medical staff. Where the hospital provides services which compete
with services provided by a member or members of the medical staff, the
hospital will, when referring a patient, inform the patient of all appropriate
services available in the community and of any interest the hospital holds in
any of these services. Given all relevant information, the patient is better
able to make an informed decision when choosing between services. The hospital
and physicians should compete on the basis of the quality of the service
provided and not on set referral patterns.
[Other sections]
Lifespan and Newport Health Care Corporation are committed to a continuing
effort to maintain principles of ethical business conduct. To accomplish this,
Lifespan has developed a system-wide Corporate Compliance Program which
includes the Newport Health Care Corporation. This program has been reviewed
and approved by the Newport Health Care Corporation board of trustees. The
purpose of this program is to ensure that Lifespan and its affiliates conduct
their operations and provide services in a manner consistent with the mission
statement, vision, values and charitable purposes and with all applicable
federal and state laws and regulations. The program consists of a mechanism
for reporting, investigating, monitoring and responding to potential,
threatened or actual violations of federal or state law. The program is
intended to serve as a vehicle for Lifespan on an ongoing basis, to educate
its employees and police itself, in order to prevent any violations of law
from occurring and/or to minimize the impact, exposure or liability of any
such violations.
Every Newport Health Care Corporation manager has a copy of The Lifespan
Corporate Compliance Program Manual and a copy is maintained in Newport
Hospital's Library Resource Center. The manual includes the code of conduct
and valuable information about laws, regulations and standards such as the
Medicare/Medicaid Conditions of Participation, standards affecting the
delivery of health care services and products such as professional licensing
requirements and accreditation requirements of the Joint Commission on the
Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and Food and Drug Administration
registration requirements, antitrust, fraud and abuse, anti-kickback and
self-referral laws, laws affecting the recruitment of physicians, laws
regulating tax-exempt organizations, laws regulating the disposal of hazardous
and medical waste, environmental and OSHA laws and laws affecting employment,
such as sexual harassment laws, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the
federal Family Medical Leave Act.
[Other sections]
Business will be conducted in good faith, with integrity and in accordance
with these ethical standards. Adherence to such standards should never be
traded or compromised for financial, professional or other business
objectives. This obligation includes dealing honestly with other health care
providers, educational institutions, payers, internal and external customers,
suppliers, competitors and financial partners.
Business decisions will be based on the corporate mission, strategic plan
and hospital resources. They will take into consideration the health care
needs of the community served by the hospital with care given to avoid
duplication of services, and services that are unnecessary or non-efficacious.
As we work to provide care in a more cost-effective manner, we will strive to
provide care that meets our standards. Newport Hospital will not be wasteful
in the utilization of its resources. In all business matters, Newport Hospital
will obey all relevant laws, regulatory standards and ethical codes.
[Other sections]
The Newport Health Care Corporation will ensure that the assets of the
Corporation are invested in a manner that is consistent with the overall
mission, values and ethical standards of Newport Hospital. Investments will
not be made in companies deemed to have significant activities contrary to
good health.
[Other sections]
All persons associated with the Newport Health Care Corporation and its
subsidiaries should avoid actual or potential conflicts of interest (i.e.,
situations in which a person has the potential to direct or influence a
decision to his or her own or family's gain or advantage or to expose Newport
Hospital to harm as a result of a conflict of interest).
Any person having any substantial investment, financial interest or
compensation relationship, direct or indirect, in any supplier, client or
competitor should make prompt and full disclosure to the president of the
hospital or the board of trustees so that appropriate action may be taken to
ensure that such conflict does not inappropriately influence important
decisions. Trustees, board-level committee members, the chief executive
officer, vice presidents, medical staff officers, department chairpersons,
committee chairpersons and others as identified by the board will be required
to complete an annual disclosure form identifying possible conflicts of
interest.
Likewise, any person associated with Newport Hospital shall not give or
accept a gift, entertainment or other material benefit from any person or
concern which does, or is seeking to do, business with Newport Hospital if
such gift, entertainment or material benefit might influence the person's or
the concern's medical or business decisions. Employees of Newport Hospital
shall not accept gratuities or tips from patients other than a token of
appreciation presented to a department.
[Other sections]
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