Refer to the ethical case scenario below. Evaluate the case scenario and answer the seven ethical decision-making questions as listed.

Case Scenario:

The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is scheduled to visit in six months. The Director of Health Information Management knows that the hospital is not in compliance with the JCAHO's standards regarding timely completion of medical records. She meets with some of the hospital's administrators to discuss options for addressing the problem. One of the hospital administrators has suggested that the Director hide the incomplete record information by not recording or removing selected incomplete records in the computer system. Since physicians who are on vacation cannot work on their charts, the administrator suggests taking the records of vacationing physicians out of the system.

1) What is the ethical question?

2) What are the facts?

3) Who are the stakeholders?

4) What are the options?

5) What is the decision (what HIM values are at stake)

6) What justifies the choice?

7) What is the prevention (so the issue does not occur again)?