| Course | HCA 100 Contemporary Issues in Health Care |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 5 |
| Paper type | Ethics case analysis |
| Length | About 1,041 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Health Care Administration |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for HCA 100 Module 5
A Daughter at the Desk Asking for Her Mother's Results: An Ethical Situation for a Front Desk Worker, Analyzed Step by Step
Student Name
Health Care Administration Program, Aspen University
HCA 100: Contemporary Issues in Health Care
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
A Daughter at the Desk Asking for Her Mother's Results: An Ethical Situation for a Front Desk Worker, Analyzed Step by Step
Ethical questions in health care are not limited to clinicians. Support workers face them daily, often at the front desk and without time to consult anyone. This paper analyzes one such situation at a composite family medicine clinic using a step-by-step method: identify the facts and the question, apply ethical principles, check the law, weigh the options and choose an action. The goal is a way of reasoning that support workers can use when the next hard moment arrives.
The Situation
Ms. A., a composite 49-year-old woman, arrives at the front desk and says her mother, Mrs. A., 78, had blood tests last week. Her mother is at home, tired and worried, and asked her to pick up the results. Ms. A. is clearly anxious and says she handles all her mother's appointments. The receptionist, Jordan, checks the record and finds no authorization naming Ms. A. and no note about a personal representative. The results include an abnormal value that the provider has not yet discussed with Mrs. A.
Step One: The Ethical Question
The question is whether Jordan should give Ms. A. her mother's results. It is an ethical question because important values conflict: helping a worried family and a tired patient on one side, and protecting the patient's privacy and her right to hear results from her provider first on the other.
Who Else Is Involved
Before weighing principles, it helps to see who has a stake. Mrs. A. has the strongest claim, since the information is about her body. Ms. A. has a real interest as a caregiver. The provider has a duty to explain an abnormal result and plan next steps. The clinic has legal and reputational responsibilities. Jordan, the receptionist, carries the immediate decision and the emotional weight of disappointing a worried family member. Naming each party makes it easier to find an option that serves the patient first while respecting everyone else.
Step Two: The Principles
Four principles often guide medical ethics. Respect for autonomy means Mrs. A. decides who knows her health information. Beneficence means acting for her good, which may include helping her daughter help her. Nonmaleficence means avoiding harm, including the harm of learning an abnormal result without explanation. Justice means treating her the same as any other patient. In this situation, autonomy and nonmaleficence weigh most heavily: Mrs. A. has not said her daughter may receive results, and hearing an abnormal value from a receptionist could frighten her without guidance.
Step Three: The Law
The HIPAA Privacy Rule lets providers share information with family members involved in a patient's care in some circumstances, for example when the patient is present and does not object, or when the provider judges it is in the patient's best interest, and it gives patients the right to name others who may receive their information (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2022). It does not require a receptionist to hand results to anyone who asks. Clinic policy, like most, reserves disclosure decisions of this kind for clinical staff and for patients who have given permission. Knowing the general rule, and knowing that clinic policy sends such decisions to clinical staff, lets Jordan act confidently without having to interpret the law alone.
Step Four: The Options
The table weighs Jordan's options.
| Option | Benefits | Risks |
|---|---|---|
| Give Ms. A. the printed results | Quick; satisfies the daughter | Breaches the mother's privacy choices; she may hear abnormal news without explanation |
| Refuse and send Ms. A. away | Protects privacy | Leaves a worried family without help; feels cold |
| Explain the rule kindly, offer to have the nurse call Mrs. A. today, and give Ms. A. the form her mother can sign to name her as a contact | Protects privacy, connects the patient with a clinician, solves the problem for next time | Takes a few more minutes |
Step Five: The Action and the Words
Jordan chooses the third option. The words matter as much as the choice: "I can tell you're taking good care of your mom, and I want to help. I'm not able to give out her results without her permission on file, but I can have our nurse call her this afternoon to go over them, and here's a form she can sign so you can get information for her in the future." This protects Mrs. A.'s autonomy and prevents harm, while showing Ms. A. respect and a way forward. Jordan then sends a message to the nurse and notes the conversation in the record.
What If the Situation Changed
The analysis changes if the facts change. If Mrs. A. had signed a form naming her daughter, or if she were present and agreed, sharing the results would respect her autonomy. If Ms. A. held legal authority as her mother's personal representative, the Privacy Rule would generally treat her as the patient for these purposes. If the results were entirely normal and the provider had already released them to the patient portal, the risk of harm would be smaller. A good method allows the answer to change with the facts rather than applying one rule to every case.
Why Support Workers Need a Method
Support workers usually cannot pause to consult an ethicist. A short method, question, principles, law, options, action, lets them reason quickly and explain their choice, and handing the clinical part to a nurse reflects the clear roles that effective teams depend on (Mitchell et al., 2012). It also shows when to hand a decision to someone else: here, the clinical conversation belongs to the nurse. Professional codes for support roles emphasize respect for confidential information and human dignity (American Association of Medical Assistants, n.d.), and a method helps workers honor both under pressure.
Conclusion
A daughter asking for her mother's results is an everyday situation with real ethical weight. Worked through step by step, it shows that respecting the patient's autonomy and avoiding harm point to kindly declining, connecting the patient with a nurse and offering a form for the future. The method, and the careful choice of words, give support workers a way to act ethically when the question arrives at the desk.
References
American Association of Medical Assistants. (n.d.). AAMA medical assistant code of ethics. https://www.aama-ntl.org
Mitchell, P., Wynia, M., Golden, R., McNellis, B., Okun, S., Webb, C. E., Rohrbach, V., & Von Kohorn, I. (2012). Core principles and values of effective team-based health care [Discussion paper]. Institute of Medicine. https://doi.org/10.31478/201210c
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2022). Summary of the HIPAA privacy rule. https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/privacy/laws-regulations/index.html
Reading the HCA 100 Module 5 assignment instructions
Medical ethics appears in Aspen's HCA 100 catalog entry; the course keeps its module prompts private, so that entry guided the case chosen here. An ethics assignment in an introductory health care course usually asks you to analyze a scenario, identify the ethical principles involved, consider legal limits, weigh options and justify a decision. Some instructors provide a decision-making model; others let you choose one. Check whether you must use the four principles, whether a table of options is welcome, and whether you should discuss how the answer might change under different facts. Instructors usually value reasoning over a quick verdict, so show each step. Some courses supply the scenario; if yours does not, keep it simple and realistic.
How this HCA 100 Module 5 example is built
Ten sections and one options table make up the analysis, some 1,020 words in all. The introduction explains why ethics matters for support workers. The situation is described in detail, including the missing authorization and the abnormal result. Separate sections frame the ethical question and name who else is involved. The four principles are weighed against each other, then the law is checked. The table compares three options with benefits and risks. The chosen action is given with the words to use, a section explores how different facts would change the answer, another explains why support workers need a method, and a conclusion summarizes the reasoning. The words the receptionist uses are quoted in full.
Where the marks sit in the HCA 100 Module 5 rubric
Ethics analyses tend to be graded on correct identification of principles, reasoned weighing, attention to law and policy, and a justified decision. Principles are named and weighed rather than listed, which a margin note credits. Stakeholders are identified before any choice is made, noted in a second comment. Law is described accurately, including what the Privacy Rule permits and where clinic policy sends the decision. Options are compared fairly in a table. The chosen action is justified and includes the exact words, which instructors value. The section on changing facts shows flexible reasoning. Citations appear where legal and professional claims are made. The analysis never loses sight of the mother, the person whose information is at stake.
HCA 100 Module 5 help: mistakes that cost marks
The most common error is jumping to an answer without showing the reasoning. Work through the steps in order. Students also treat privacy law as forbidding all sharing with family, which is not accurate; explain what is permitted and why this case is different. Another frequent gap is ignoring the patient's own wishes, which should weigh most. Some papers choose the right action but forget the words, although how a refusal is said decides whether the family feels respected. Script the response. Finally, consider how the answer would change if the facts changed, since that shows understanding rather than rule-following. Keep the patient at the center of every option you weigh.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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HCA 100 Module 5 questions, answered
What does HCA 100 Module 5 usually ask for?
Aspen's HCA 100 description includes medical ethics for health care workers, so analyzing an ethical situation a support worker might face is a typical assignment. Check your classroom for the prompt.
Can front desk staff give results to a family member?
Usually not without the patient's permission or a clinical decision. Offer to have a clinician contact the patient and explain how the patient can name a family contact.
What are the four principles of medical ethics?
Respect for autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence and justice.
Where can I find a free HCA 100 Module 5 sample paper?
Read the daughter-at-the-desk analysis above in its entirety, options table and annotations included; it is free. It is the fifth HCA 100 sample.
What method works for an HCA 100 Module 5 ethics case?
Frame the question, name the stakeholders, weigh the principles, check the law and policy, compare options and choose an action you can justify and explain.