ONE SMALL CUT THAT KILLED

Dr. Pelham is a primary care physician in a Guelph Hospital. On average, she seesseveral patients a day from a variety of backgrounds who come in with anassortment of conditions, injuries and ailments.One day Naruto comes to see her complaining of ankle pain in his right leg. Narutois a farmer and says that he fell while he was taking care of his chickens in thechicken coup. He has some cuts and bruises on both legs, complains of a swollenright ankle, but appears to be fine otherwise. Dr. Pelham instructs him to purchasean air cast for his right leg at a pharmacy along with some ibuprofen and take iteasy. Dr. Pelham returns to seeing other patients and Naruto goes home.Three days later Naruto is admitted to the emergency room. He has low bloodpressure, a fever, extreme shaking, an irregular heartbeat, and is very agitated. Afterremoval of the air cast, the nurses notice a cut that has become infected on his leftleg (the opposite leg from the swollen ankle). Naruto's condition continues toworsen and he eventually goes into septic shock. After two days in the ICU, Narutodies of complete organ failure.The family want answers, and so far, all they know is that he came in with one smallcut and suddenly died. Dr. Pelham is afraid that if she admits that there was anychance that she made a mistake, that she'll be in bigger trouble - both legally andprofessionally. She is also very afraid of what her colleagues and patients will thinkif she admits that she was negligent in any way.

1. Does Dr. Pelham have an ethical obligation to admit errorand/or apologize to Naruto's family?

2. What are the possiblebenefits/risks in explaining what went wrong and/oradmitting fault? (2 Marks)

3. What could the hospital and/or Dr. Pelham (or anyphysician/health care provider) have done differently? Wasthis a preventable mistake? (2 Marks)

3. Do the particulars of this case require public scrutiny? Whyor why not? (2 Marks)

4. Discuss this fact scenario in the context of the ethicaltheories discussed in class. (4 Marks