Which of the following is considered an ethical issue in healthcare?

Patient confidentiality and informed consent are foundational ethical principles in healthcare. Maintaining patient confidentiality ensures that a patient's private health information is protected, thereby respecting their privacy and autonomy. This principle is crucial because patients need to feel secure that their personal information will not be shared without their consent, which fosters trust in the healthcare provider.

Informed consent involves ensuring that patients are fully aware of and understand the implications of any treatment or procedure proposed to them. It encompasses the right of patients to make educated decisions about their own healthcare. This process not only respects the autonomy of the patient but is also essential for ethical practice in medicine.

The other options involve operational aspects of healthcare that, while important for effective patient care, do not directly pertain to ethical considerations. Efficient scheduling, collecting billing information, and maintaining medical equipment are primarily administrative and logistical tasks that, while necessary for the functioning of a healthcare system, do not engage the same level of ethical scrutiny as issues directly related to patient rights and dignity.