Title: Examine ethical and legal issues related to the practice of dentistry.
Course: Dental Careers I (14054-I) > Section: Investigating Dental Ethics and Law

Examination should include

- Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) Virginia Dental Assistant Requirements
- definitions of ethics and code of ethics
- a comparison of ethics and law
- an explanation of how a code of ethics should influence the work of a practicing dental professional
- the standard of care, including considerations related to

  - assault and battery
  - defamation of character
  - invasion of privacy
  - Good Samaritan laws
  - Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

- the types of law related to the practice of dentistry

  - contract
  - malpractice
  - tort
- the legal responsibilities of an oral health professional.

Process/Skill Questions:

- What are the differences and similarities between ethics and law?
- How does ethics relate to the practice of dentistry?
- How might a dental assistant's professional ethics affect a patient? In a situation involving ethical questions, to whom is a dental assistant primarily responsible—the dentist or the patient?
- What type of law is most often applied in dentistry? What are the requirements for contract law to apply? How does contract law apply to the dentist-patient relationship?
- What is a breach of contract?
- What are the differences among fraud, waste, and abuse?