Discusses the cost-cutting HMOs with the resulting battle over ethics and priorities of American medicine. 1988 Reports on the economic inequalities in America's health care system that results in many poor people being denied medical treatment while huge sums of money are devoted to the treatment of the terminally ill and organ transplant patients. Questions the methods by which priorities are determined in the nation's health care system. A vignette designed to evoke discussion about patient rights and cultural diversity. Describes the New York State Patient's Bill of Rights and the hospital's responsibility to provide the patient with copies and explantions of these rights.
Scenarios illustrates both correct and incorrect procedures to ensure respect for patient rights.
Uses two real life stories in which media pressure successfully changed the coverage policies of Blue Cross and Medicaid, as a springboard for discussing the issues surrounding the role of journalism in health care. Discusses the choice society must make regarding whether health care dollars should be spent on a single individual who has aroused the emotional sympathy of the public through press coverage, or spread across a larger segment of the population. Describes criteria and techniques for determining brain death, tests for confirming brain death, protocols for diagnosing comatose patients, and how a nurse might explain the patient's condition to family members. This video outlines the procedures for determining brain death. Moderator Arthur Miller presents hypothetical scenarios that force panalists to role-play in situations where the right choices, both professional and personal, are not always evident.