Ohio Administrative Code
Title 4753 - Ohio Speech and Hearing Professionals Board
Chapter 4753-9 - Code of Ethics
Section 4753-9-01 - "Code of Ethics"
Universal Citation: OH Admin Code 4753-9-01
Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A) Definitions:
(1)
Unprofessional
conduct means any departure from or failure to conform to the minimal standards
of acceptable and prevailing practice and shall also include, but not be
limited to the provision of professional services which are detrimental to
person(s) being served.
(2)
Dual relationship means when more than one role occurs
between the licensee and person(s) being served professionally. A dual
relationship is prohibited when the relationship between the licensee and
person(s) being professionally served involves a sexual or intimate
relationship or other conduct that constitutes a conflict of
interest.
(3)
Committing an act of sexual abuse or misconduct against
a client means any unwelcome behavior of a sexual nature that is committed
without consent, by force, intimidation, coercion, or manipulation. Sexual
abuse or misconduct can be committed by a person of any gender, and it can
occur between people of the same or different genders.
(4)
Exploitation of a
client means to take unfair advantage of a person(s) being professionally
served.
(5)
Violating client confidentiality means a failure to
protect and keep confidential any personal health information without the
authorization or consent of person(s) professionally served or where prohibited
by law.
(6)
Conflict of Interest means personal, financial, or
other considerations influenced or compromised professional judgment and
objectivity to person(s) professionally served.
(7)
Informed consent
means authorization by persons served, research participants engaged, or
parents and/or guardians of persons served to a proposed course of action after
the communication of adequate information regarding expected outcomes and
potential risks. Informed consent may be verbal unless written consent is
required.
(B) Preamble: Licensees shall hold tantamount the health and welfare of person(s) served or participants in research.
(1)
Licensees shall
respect and protect the inherent worth, integrity, dignity and rights of each
person served or participant in research including his/her right of
self-determination.
(2)
The relationship between the professional and the
person(s) served, supervised or participants in research makes it imperative
that the professional is aware of the vulnerability of the person(s) served,
supervised or participants in research; licensees shall not:
(a)
Discriminate in
his/her relationships with person(s) served, supervised, or participants in
research, colleagues, students, and members of the allied professions on the
basis of race, ethnicity, sex, gender, age, religion, national origin, sexual
orientation, disability, culture, language, or dialect.
(b)
Engage in sexual
or intimate relations with the person(s) served, supervised or participants in
research, including committing an act of sexual abuse, misconduct, or
exploitation of the person(s) served or participants in research, including
parents, step-parents, guardians, foster parents, or legal custodians of a
person under the age of eighteen.
(c)
Harass or abuse
person(s) served or supervised or participants in research.
(d)
Engage in the
evaluation or remediation of speech, language, or hearing disorders except in a
professional relationship.
(e)
Participate in
activities that constitute a conflict of interest.
(3)
Licensees shall
use reasonable precautions to protect the health and welfare of person(s)
served in the delivery of professional services and in
research.
(4)
Licensees shall be proficient in areas within their
scope of practice, areas of treatment, objective in the application of skills,
and maintain concern for the best interests of person(s) served, supervised,
participants in research, colleagues, and society as a whole.
(5)
Licensees shall
practice within the established standards of practice and training recognized
by the American speech-language-hearing association or the American academy of
audiology.
(6)
To protect the public confidence, public behavior shall
reflect a high level of moral and ethical behaviors.
(7)
When making
public statements, licensees shall:
(a)
Provide information about professional services and
products that do not contain misrepresentations or claims that are false,
deceptive, or misleading.
(b)
Provide accurate information about the nature and
management of communicative disorders, the professions, and services rendered
to persons served, supervised professionally or participants in
research.
(c)
Announce services in a manner consonant with the
highest professional standards.
(8)
Licensees shall
not mislead or limit services with person(s) served, supervised or participants
in research based on professional or commercial affiliations.
(9)
Licensees shall
subscribe to these principles and the code of ethics adopted by the board and
agree to abide by the rules of the board and Chapters 4744. and 4753. of the
Revised Code.
(10)
Licensees shall report to the board any violation of
the board rules or any breach of the code of ethics that the licensee is aware
of.
(11)
Licensees who have knowledge that a colleague is unable
to provide professional services with reasonable skill and safety shall report
this information to the appropriate authority, internally if a mechanism exists
and, otherwise, externally.
(12)
Licensees shall
notify the board in writing of a conviction; been found guilty; or entered a
plea of guilty or nolo contendere to any felony or misdemeanor convictions,
other than minor traffic violations, including the case number and the court,
within thirty days from the date of the conviction, plea, or finding of
guilt.
(13)
Individuals who have been publicly sanctioned or denied
a license or a professional credential by any professional association,
professional licensing authority or board, or other professional regulatory
body shall self-report by notifying the board in writing of the final action or
disposition and shall provide a copy of the final action, sanction or
disposition within thirty days.
(C) Fundamental rules considered essential. Violation of the code of ethics shall be considered unprofessional conduct.
(1) Licensees shall
maintain professional behavior.
(a) Licensees
shall not engage in dishonesty, fraud, deceit, misrepresentation, or
other illegal conduct that adversely reflects on
the profession or the individual.
(b)
Individuals shall
work collaboratively, when appropriate, with members of one's own profession
and/or members of other professions to deliver the highest quality of care to
person(s) served or participants in research.
(c)
Individuals shall
not engage in sexual activities with individuals (other than a spouse or other
individual with whom a consensual relationship exists) over whom they exercise
professional authority, judgment, or supervision, with persons receiving
services, including parents, stepparents, guardians, foster parents, or legal
custodians of a person under the age of eighteen, support personnel, students,
or research participants.
(d) Licensees shall
not practice or conduct research under the
influence of illegal substances, alcohol, chemicals, or
other health-related conditions that adversely affect their professional
practice or research and shall seek professional assistance, and, where
appropriate withdraw from the affected area of practice or research.
(e) Licensees shall
maintain a professional relationship with the board.
(i) Licensees shall conduct their practice
according to Chapters 4744. and 4753. of the
Revised Code and agencies 4744 and 4753 of the
Administrative Code.
(ii) Licensees
shall cooperate with all lawful requests of the board within thirty calendar
days.
(iii) The denial or
revocation of licensure in another state, or from another board in this state,
may result in denial or revocation of licensure by the board.
(f) When patients from a primary employment setting
are seen in another setting, the person(s) served professionally shall be fully
informed of services available from the licensee's primary employment setting
as well as those from the private practice and given freedom to choose whether
and from whom they
will obtain professional services.
(i) The costs associated with obtaining
services from the licensee's primary employment setting versus those associated
with the private practice shall be fully
disclosed.
(ii) Practitioners accepting cases in a
private setting from their primary place of employment shall inform the
administrator at their primary employment setting of the intent.
(2) Licensees shall
maintain records and keep confidentiality of person(s) served, including:
(a) Maintaining adequate
and timely records of professional services
rendered.
(b) Providing appropriate
access to records of person(s) served professionally.
(c) Not disclosing to unauthorized persons
any confidential information obtained from any person(s) served,
supervised professionally, or participants in research without the written
consent of person(s) served or his/her legal guardian unless required by
law.
(d) Being compliant with all
state and federal laws and regulations relating to records keeping, records
access and patient confidentiality.
(3) Licensees shall exhibit professional
behavior in the delivery of services by:
(a)
Accurately representing his/her education,
training, credentials and competence.
(b)
Providing
only services for which he/she is properly trained.
(c)
Continuing
their professional development to enhance their
professional competence and expertise throughout their careers.
(d)
Providing
reasonable notice and information about alternatives for obtaining care in the
event that the licensee can no longer provide professional
services.
(e) Accepting for treatment, persons:
(i) Who can reasonably be expected to benefit
from services and continue with treatment when there is reasonable expectation
of further benefit.
(ii) Following
the exercise of independent professional and
evidence-based judgment, regardless of referral source or
prescription, and keeping paramount the best interests
of those being served.
(f) Fully informing
person(s) served of the nature and possible effects of service
(g)
Using
all reasonable precautions to avoid injury to persons in the delivery of
professional services or conduct of research
including but not limited to the following:
(i) Established guidelines for infection
control.
(ii) Established
procedural techniques.
(iii) Safety
guidelines for equipment.
(h)
Providing only services and products that are in the
best interest of person(s) served.
(i)
Evaluating services rendered and products dispensed to
determine effectiveness.
(j)
Ensuring that all equipment used in the provision of
services or conduct of research is in proper
working order and is properly calibrated.
(k) Not guaranteeing
the results of any speech or hearing consultative or therapeutic procedure.
(i) A guarantee of any sort, express or
implied, oral or written, is contrary to professional ethics.
(ii) A reasonable statement of prognosis is
appropriate, but factors, hence, any warranty for services and outcomes is
deceptive and unethical.
(l)
Using
every resource available, including referrals to other specialists as needed,
to effect maximum improvement in person(s) served. Licensees shall:
(i) Identify competent, dependable referral
sources for person(s) served professionally.
(ii) Include referrals to other audiologists
and speech-language pathologists when the scope and nature of the indicated
evaluation and/or treatment is beyond the training of the licensee.
(iii) Not order excessive tests, treatment or
use of treatment facilities when not warranted by the condition of the
person(s) served.
(iv)
Make use of technology and instrumentation consistent
with accepted professional guidelines in their areas of practice. When such
technology is not available, an appropriate referral shall be
made.
(m) Licensees shall be
compliant with all state and federal laws and regulations governing the
practice of speech-language pathology and audiology and the dispensing and
selling of products.
(n) Licensees shall not disparage the goods, services
or business of another by false representation of fact.
(o)
Licensees shall
make use of equipment, technology and instrumentation consistent with accepted
professional guidelines in their areas of practice.
(4) Licensees supervising conditional
licensees, aides, and students: shall prohibit anyone under their supervision
from engaging in any practice that violates Chapters
4744. and 4753. of the Revised Code or agencies4744 and 4753 of the Administrative Code including the
code of ethics.
(a) Supervisors of clinical
practice shall:
(i) Provide direct and
indirect clinical supervision.
(ii)
Maintain adequate records of direct and indirect supervision
rendered.
(iii) Not supervise the
clinical practice of a student or aide, while completing the supervised
professional experience required for licensure under section
4753.06 of the Revised
Code.
(b) Supervisors of
supervised professional experience shall:
(i)
Not delegate any service requiring the professional competence of a licensed
clinician to anyone unqualified.
(ii) Limit conditional licensees to providing
services pursuant only to a specific plan approved by the board.
(c) Aide supervisors shall:
(i) Ensure aides provide services pursuant
only to a specific plan approved by the board.
(ii) Assume full responsibility of services
provided by the aide.
(iii) Not
offer clinical services by aides for whom they do not provide appropriate
supervision.
(iv) Ensure aides do
not represent himself/herself to the public as a speech-language pathologist or
audiologist.
(v) Ensure aides abide
by Chapter 4753. of the Revised Code and agency 4753 of the Administrative
Code.
(5)
Licensees performing research shall:
(a)
Ensure persons selected for research participate
voluntarily,
without coercion, with informed
consent.
Licensees shall also protect the
participants' right to privacy, including but not limited to personal health
information.
(b) Inform
person(s) served and research participants
about the nature and effects of
research activities.
(c) Use
established methods and techniques in research.
(d) Exercise all reasonable precautions to
protect the health and welfare of research
participants
and their
rights.
(e) Assign credit to those
who have contributed to a publication and development of materials in
proportion to their contribution.
(f) Credit reference sources.
(g) Honestly and accurately report findings
in a non-misleading manner.
(h)
Enter into agreements with those funding research that allow the researcher to
honestly and accurately report findings even when results of research do not
positively reflect on the funding source and/or the funding source's services
or products.
(i) Disclose funding
sources of research resulting in publications, presentations, products, and/or
clinical procedures, and/or cited in presentations.
(j)
Comply with all
institutional, state, and federal regulations that address any aspects of
research, including those that involve human participants and
animals.
(6)
Business practices shall be compliant with regional, state and federal laws.
(a) Licensees shall:
(i) Charge fees commensurate with services
rendered.
(ii) Not charge for
services not rendered.
(iii) Abide
by federal, state and regional laws regarding billing for services and products
rendered.
(iv) Not enter into
relationships, which pose
a conflict of interest and shall not engage in
commercial or professional activities that conflict with the licensees'
responsibilities to the person served or participants in research.
(a) Licensees who present or
participate
at meetings
and/or consultants who provide instruction may receive reasonable honoraria and
reimbursement of travel, lodging and meal expenses from manufacturers, dealers
distributors and sales persons of prosthetics or other devices or
services.
(b) Licensees who present or
participate
at meetings
and/or consultants who provide instruction shall disclose to participants
potential conflicts of interest.
(c) Kickbacks in
violation of federal and state statutes shall not be accepted.
(d)
Licensees owning stock or having financial interests in a company whose
products he/she sells, dispenses or recommends shall disclose to person(s)
served the relationship and financial or consultative interest.
(b) Licensees shall be compliant with state
and federal laws and regulations regarding business practices, sales practices,
including safe harbor and antitrust laws.
(7) Licensees may practice via
telecommunications within the state where not prohibited by law
and in accordance with Chapter 4753-2 of the
Administrative Code.
(a) Support
personnel in off-site locations assisting in clinical care, shall be licensed
aides under Chapter 4753. of the Revised Code.
(b) Evaluation and/or treatment shall not be
solely by correspondence.
Effective: 8/12/2019
Five Year
Review (FYR) Dates: 9/25/2022
Promulgated Under:
119.03
Statutory
Authority: 4744.28,
4753.05
Rule
Amplifies: 4744.50,
4753.05(A)
Prior Effective Dates: 02/09/1973, 04/22/1976, 11/16/1992 (Emer.),
09/10/1994, 07/24/2000, 08/23/2004, 04/24/2006, 09/24/2006,
12/10/2007
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Ohio may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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