or not be returned. Therefore, most facilities require that charts and the documents included in the charts stay at the facility. Although not germane to this vignette, practitioners who write documentation on a laptop or home computer and send the Student education issues vignettes Vignette 1 – High IQ not required or in evidence ● “I copied my paper from the Internet. The instructor will never know,” said Howard. ● “I sent a text message to another student during the exam. She gave me the answer to the test question. The professor never caught me. And I’m planning to do the same thing while taking the license exam,” said Susan. The APTA Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist (2010b) Principle 4A could be cited in reference to this vignette: “physical therapists shall provide truthful, accurate, and relevant information and shall not make misleading representations.” Physical therapy personnel, including students, are expected to be truthful about the work they do, including writing term papers and taking examinations. Vignette 2 – Give me a break already! ● “My clinical instructor did not like me, so she flunked me. OK, I missed a few days to visit my boyfriend. Big deal,” said Carol. ● “I really bad-mouthed that fieldwork site on Facebook. The director got upset.” ● “I don’t need any piece of paper (license) to tell me how to practice physical therapy. I’ve been a PT for more than 30 years!” said Emily. ● “You mean I’ve been practicing without a current license for 2 years? Why didn’t someone tell me?” said Marisa. The APTA Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist (2010b) states that “physical therapists shall comply with applicable local, state, and federal laws and regulations” (Principle 5A). Ignorance of the state practice act (or of the APTA Code ) is no excuse. Each physical therapist and physical therapist assistant is responsible for holding an updated license in the state in which he or she provides professional services. Vignette 2 – Inconvenient truths ● “I’m just too busy to get all those continuing education credits to qualify for my licensure renewal. I have a life, you know,” said Irene. ● “I was convicted of DUI (driving under the influence) but skipped out on rehab. I didn’t mention it on my license application – and you keep your mouth shut, too,” said Leonard. The APTA Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist (2010b) states that “physical therapists shall achieve and maintain professional competence” (Principle 6A). They are also responsible for providing “truthful, accurate, and relevant information and shall not make misleading representations” (Principle 4A). Whereas Irene and Leonard have their own responsibilities to maintain continued competency, the individuals to whom Irene and Leonard are speaking (assuming they are also physical therapy personnel) have an ethical obligation to report information to the state licensure board if they are reasonably sure that the information is correct. It is possible that Irene is simply letting off steam but actually intends to get the required continuing education hours before her renewal date. Complaining about the continuing education rule will not change the situation but may make Irene feel better. On the other hand, Leonard may mean what he says: He did not state on his licensure application that he failed to complete his rehabilitation program for substance abuse. The person to whom Leonard was speaking should report to the licensing board Licensure violations vignettes Vignette 1 – Clueless
documentation to a facility via the Internet need to ensure that the device is encrypted and the Internet connection is secure. Accessing an open wireless connection on an unencrypted device (laptop, iPad) at the local café would not be advised.
The APTA Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist (2010b) states that “physical therapists shall promote practice environments that support autonomous and accountable professional judgments” (Principle 7A) and “shall not exploit persons over whom they have supervisory, evaluative, or other authority (e.g., patients/clients, students, supervisees, research participants, or employees”; Principle 4B). Students should be evaluated on the basis of their performance, not their personality. If the student did not perform up to clearly delineated standards, such as missing several workdays, then the student may have been fairly evaluated and deemed to have failed her fieldwork experience. However, “bad-mouthing” the clinical facility site is not an appropriate response. Physical therapy education programs depend on facilities to educate students during fieldwork. Bad-mouthing the facility may result in the facility declining to educate additional physical therapy students. In addition to violating the APTA Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist, bad-mouthing fieldwork facilities is likely a violation of a student code of conduct at the educational institution and could result in sanctions from the institution, including dismissal from the program. that the application information was incomplete. An alternative action is to convince Leonard to report the misinformation himself. In either approach, the important end result is that the licensure board gets the correct information and that Leonard understands that lying or failing to tell the complete truth on an application form is not acceptable ethical or legal behavior. In addition, the state licensure board may take disciplinary action for falsifying information on a legal document, and the form of discipline could include denying or suspending his application to practice. Vignette 3 – Just use the GPS locator ● “Why do I always have to notify the licensure board that I’ve moved? Besides, when I moved 2 years ago, I only moved two blocks away,” said Patricia. ● “I meant to mail in my renewal, but I lost it. What’s the big deal, anyway? It’s just a piece of paper,” said Rodney. The APTA Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist (2010b) states that “physical therapists shall comply with applicable local, state, and federal laws and regulations” (Principle 5A). Excuses do not absolve physical therapy personnel from their responsibilities. These responsibilities include informing the state licensure board when the licensee has moved to a new address or changed his or her name. Information about renewal dates is sent to the name and address on file with the state licensure board. If the name or address is incorrect, the licensee is responsible for correcting the contact information. The post office generally does not forward mail more than 6 months after it has been notified of an address change. Vignette 4 – Animal house ● “The dog ate my renewal notice. You know, out of sight out of mind. Actually, on second thought, I think it was the cat or maybe the bird. Perhaps a mouse?” As in the previous vignette, excuses do not absolve physical therapy personnel from their responsibilities to hold credentials appropriate to the physical therapy services they provide. Although the scenarios may seem exaggerated, the point is important. Finding ways to follow the rules, such as reminders in one’s personal calendar, are more useful than making up excuses.
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