Medical ethics studies moral issues that arise in the healthcare setting. Examples include end-of-life care, allocation of scarce resources, and conflicts of interest. Medical ethics is important because it helps healthcare providers identify and resolve ethical dilemmas.
In addition, studying this subject can help us improve the quality of care patients receive. For instance, understanding end-of-life issues will allow doctors and nurses to provide better palliative care. Similarly, learning about resource allocation can help providers make more impartial decisions regarding which treatments to offer.
Studying medical ethics can also help prevent situations in which healthcare providers act in their own interest rather than for the benefit of their patients.
Introduction Ethical dilemmas refer to situations wherein a professional is stuck between two or more issues with similar values. As such, they are stranded on what to decide because consequences are inevitable regardless of their choice. Similarly, in the medical profession, nurses and physicians are often faced with ethical issues...
Summary Voluntary termination of human life is one of the most controversial topics related to human health. People experiencing significant psychological or physiological suffering often resort to suicide methods. The ethics of this issue are incredibly confusing, and these contradictions only intensify when considering the problem from a medical perspective....
In the present day, abortion remains a highly controversial topic in both developed and developing countries. While pro-life groups view this procedure as a murder and a religious sin, the supporters of a pro-choice perspective state that women should have a right to decisions concerning their bodies and lives in...
Introduction Bioethics is a moral stronghold in the field of medicine and human treatment. It considers the problems in applying new medical technologies and their possible negative impact on the individual and society as a whole. Life is of great value and must be respected not only from the point...
The case of Terri Schiavo dates back to 1990 when she was diagnosed with severe brain injury, commonly called a persistent vegetative state, after falling in the house and becoming unconscious. The condition worsened, prompting her husband, Michael, to apply for removal of feeding tubes in 1998 to stop her...
Introduction & Position Statement The ethics of placebo-controlled trials have been the subject of controversies over time and have divided the scientific, regulatory and the ethicist communities. Some argue for the use placebo only when there is no proven intervention for the condition under study, while others think it should...
Introduction Today’s health sector offers a variety of specialties, which has, in some manner, aided in providing quality services. Healthcare provision includes various activities, including disease diagnosis, treatment, and prevention, carried out by a range of healthcare workers in different sectors. Patients often get treatments in multiple settings, including acute-care...
A code of ethics is a set of statements that the organization’s leaders put forward to showcase their support for specific values and standards of behavior. This is especially true for healthcare professionals, who rely on ethics in their practice and have to make ethical decisions when working with patients....
Today, ethical and legal issues are key characteristics of almost every profession. In particular, the intensity and nature of the ethical issues are higher in the healthcare sector, where the professionals are dealing with human life. Despite adequate training on laws and ethics governing the healthcare field, these professionals still...
Euthanasia In order to address the multifaceted subject of euthanasia, it is vital to define it first. It is the practice of allowing someone to die or killing a person in order to provide an easing of his or her suffering from pain associated with an incurable condition or terminal...
Introduction Nursing homes are essential to the healthcare sector because they offer specialized nursing care to chronically sick patients. Most people living in nursing homes are in their elderly years, and the level of care that is given to each individual varies significantly both in breadth and in the manner...
Patient preference is one of the essential components of ethical issues that arise in clinical medicine. This term implies that patients have the right to choose their health care interventions. It can manifest in the desire to accept medical care and how it is provided. In making these choices, patients...
Introduction Health care professionals often encounter intricate situations that require applying ethical principles (EPs) to make adequate decisions. The case study “To Vaccinate, or Not” centers around Jenna and Chris Smith, the parents of a 5–day–old baby girl named Ana, and Dr. Angela Kerr, the family’s new pediatrician (“Ethical case...
Introduction Physician-assisted suicide is a controversial topic because of the moral dilemmas associated with the termination of life. Moreover, language and wording are often mixed, increasing prejudice and misunderstanding in both social and professional circles. According to the American Medical Association language, physician-assisted suicide (PAS) is the act of providing...
One of the most tentative issues globally and nationally is abortion. The views on women’s rights to this procedure changed in popularity, affecting the legislature and public presentation. While it is considered a medical procedure that a woman undergoes when she wants to terminate a pregnancy, this act carries a...
A medication error is a preventable adverse effect of a patient taking the wrong medication or dosage, whether or not it is evident or harmful to the patient. Medication errors can be a source of serious patient harm, including death. Potential Intervention Approaches: Keywords for Articles: Search Results Search 1. medication...
Nurses are an integral part of the medical team, as they provide the patient with comfortable conditions of stay in a medical institution. Moreover, nurses take an active role in the patient’s recovery by prescribing certain medications and procedures. In addition, nurses have many duties and rules that they must...
Introduction There are three main ethical theories that help people make moral decisions. Utilitarianism, deontology and virtue theory were prominent philosophical ideas that originated in ancient Greece but were further developed during the Age of Enlightenment. Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that seeks to explain people wishing to achieve the...
Evidence-based practice refers to a thorough, thoughtful, and explicit utilization of the most current and best evidence to make decisions and adhere to ethical principles. Some practices do not use evidence in decision-making; hence use unproven methods, intuition, and traditions. Evidence-based practices revolved started in the field of medicine in...
Introduction A patient who approaches a doctor expects quality health care and medical treatment with the application of a healthcare provider’s all knowledge and skills for appropriate outcomes. At the same time, clinical personnel is responsible for beneficence and non-maleficence concerning patients who should be protected from any harm caused...
Introduction Today, ethical and legal issues are key characteristics of almost every profession. In nursing, integrating various models helps individuals recognize their rights and obligations from various standpoints (Park, 2012). In this case, a pregnant woman survived a car accident that resulted in serious brain traumas and the necessity of...
Abortion has been an important topic in the fields of healthcare and ethics for a long time. The complexity of this issue from the perspective of morality only amplifies with the consideration of aborting a fetus with an abnormality. The case study that will be analyzed in the present paper...
Summary This paper analyzes a court case involving medical malpractice in terms of ethics. The sides of the case include the patient, the doctor, and the governmental medical center. Arturo Iturralde went to Hilo Medical Center because of increasing weakness in his leg and was diagnosed on January 24, 2001....
Unfortunately, it is apparent that medical personnel may behave improperly towards patients, which sometimes leads to errors. A considerable share of such cases involves drug abusers and other types of addict patients; notably, some specialists show less respect to their needs as compared to those of others. The case I...
Health professionals are sometimes faced with difficult moral and ethical dilemmas presenting challenges in the decision-making process. Utilitarian theory helps them consider different factors and support the making of the most justifiable decision. It suggests that an action is right only if it promotes pleasure or happiness, and wrong in...
The ethical issue I encountered while delivering health promotion strategies to patients is informed consent requiring healthcare providers to deliver necessary and complete information about interventions, promote autonomy, and avoid any forms of biases towards individuals. Moreover, this principle stipulates that patients can refuse treatments or tests based on religious...
In the modern health care system, a patient’s desire is the underlying factor in health care decisions. The advance directive document gives patients the right to decide on the kind of health care they want. It provides directives on ways to handle patients when they are incapable of making decisions....
Effective communication within the interprofessional team is essential to improve patient safety. Finkelman and Kenner (2019) define speaking up as an expression of concern by healthcare providers for patient safety and quality of care after recognizing the risks or misconduct of other healthcare team members. These cases include errors, omissions,...
The responsibility taken by a nurse when interacting with patients and colleagues requires a thorough reconsideration of ethical norms and appropriateness in every patient scenario. The vast majority of ethical dilemmas arise from the nurses’ belief that exhaustive knowledge of the basic provisions outlined in the Code of Ethics is...
Assessment David’s history and client records indicate that he was born prematurely. He required incubation after birth suffered from anoxia, massive intraventricular hemorrhage, developmental delays, brain damage, cerebral palsy, and two cardiac arrests. He later underwent shunt surgery to ease pressure on the brain with the approval of his parents....
Dear Manager, I am writing with concern regarding the issue of outsourcing clinical trials for the birth control patch. I have learned that a global healthcare company is considering outsourcing clinical trials for a new female birth control patch to an undeveloped country. I understand that the process would save...
End-of-life decisions need to be discussed from ethical, cultural, religious, and health perspectives before a responsible person will make their final choice. Patients with irreversible diseases might experience moral dilemmas and question their personal values as they become unable to be active society’s members. In the given case, George was...
Lack of organ donation is a significant problem in the United States that influence mortality. Thousands of Americans die each year while waiting for an organ transplant that could have saved their lives. At the same time, many people who could donate their organs after their death do not become...
Mr. Bowen is 64 years old. He has been very healthy by report and very active working as a farmer. He had a right-sided cerebral vascular accident (CVA) 14 days ago and currently has a moderate leg weakness with a more significant arm weakness, slurred speech, and mild dysphagia (swallowing...
Introduction Terri Schiavo has been in a vegetative state since 1990. The court awarded her a million dollars in a medical malpractice lawsuit. Terry’s family was involved in a dispute over her future fate. In the 2003, the probe was removed by court order, but further media coverage and interest...
Research is critical to enhancing healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. It helps to identify factors contributing to medical errors and the effectiveness of evidence-based practices employed to address them. Nurses should ensure that patients participating in research studies are safe and adequately informed (Lewis et al., 2019). The practitioners ensure...
Introduction This paper examines ethical concerns and dilemmas in health and social care. The report will analyze two case studies that exemplify distinct facets of ethical dilemmas within this domain. The initial case study will delve into informed consent, whereas the subsequent case study will scrutinize the conflict between beneficence...
Introduction Terris Schiavo’s case gained public attention in 2005, challenging the medical ethics society about decision-making on life and death. The case challenged the morality and appropriateness of the justice system during the end of life without an advanced directive from the patient. Terri’s case involved the parents of Ms....
Euthanasia is a medical practice that provides mercy killing to patients suffering from incapacitating incurable diseases. Callahan opposes euthanasia because the practice is an unethical healthcare issue that undermines the purpose of medicine. According to Callahan, the purpose of medicine is to “Promote the individualistic pursuit of general human happiness...
Voluntary active euthanasia is a significant ethical issue discussed all over the world for many years. According to Brock, there are two ethical values that uphold voluntary active euthanasia, including autonomy and beneficence (Vaughn, 2016). The principle of autonomy implies that people’s choice to end their lives should be respected...
Introduction Interventional radiology (IR) is a relatively new, dynamically developing field of modern medicine, combining extensive possibilities of radiation diagnostics and experience in the use of various minimally invasive medical diagnostic interventions. This medical field can be viewed from different perspectives in order to identify how it has developed and...
Introduction The permissibility of abortion has made headlines both in the healthcare and legal domain. The pro-life supporters argue that the fetus is human and has the right to live. Any attempt to eliminate a pregnancy is considered immoral and unethical. The pro-choice viewpoint argues that a woman has the...
The philosophy of nursing is based on universal principles of ethics, the science of morality. Medical ethics, a component of general ethics, addresses humanistic, moral principles in the activities of a healthcare professional (Smith & Field, 2019). A nurse who shares the philosophy of nursing embraces ethical obligations, values, and...
Chapter 9 is devoted to discussing the problem of the implementation of the Safe Patient Handling and Mobility (SPHM) program in nursing practices and its ethical considerations. The book’s authors highlight the vital role of this program in treatment, nurses working culture, ethics, and even the country’s economy (Furlong &...
Evaluation of medical education programs is necessary to provide adequate and relevant knowledge and skills to healthcare professionals. For this purpose, various approaches and assessment models are used, which are aimed at understanding the quality of programs and their goals. However, since the assessment is carried out by people who...
Evaluation of medical education programs aims to improve the interaction of doctors and nurses; therefore, it is essential to consider many factors when estimating it. Globalization and the trend of society towards a conscious life have become the main factors for changes (Bradley et al., 2011). However, there are some...
The features of the course of heart failure in elderly and senile patients are determined by significant changes in other organ systems that directly or indirectly affect its development and treatment. With age, the glomerular filtration rate decreases, and the kidney is less able to maintain intravascular volume and electrolyte...
Healthcare is fraught with numerous issues that require thorough consideration to ensure ethical decision-making. Chapter 7 reiterates how data security in healthcare impacts patient privacy, and chapter 8 reminds us that advances relying on research require particular attention to informed consent in the process. Other sources used in this case...
Introduction People’s ethical values are standards for their actions and decisions. Many lives depend on nurses, and therefore the requirements for their ethical commitment, values, and beliefs are incredibly firm. The formation of the moral framework of nurses is influenced by various factors – their childhood, education, relationships with their...
Ethics is one of the crucial aspects of the healthcare system since it concerns the fair and reliable treatment on the point of the medical personnel. Medical ethics guarantees that patients will be treated attentively and with respect to their dignity despite their race, age, sex, financial situation, or other...
Spontaneous abortion is the non-prompted fetus or embryo demise or passage of ‘products of conception’ before twenty weeks of gestation. The condition can occur due to uncontrollable causes such as poor management of chronic health conditions and body issues affecting the mother (“Ontological status of the human embryo”, n.d.). On...
The Principles of Utilitarian Ethics The utilitarian ethical theory is a theorem that determines right or wrong actions based on their consequences. The ideas of this theory include welfares, impartiality, higher-ordered pleasures or pain, and act versus rule utilitarianism (Bellefleur & Keeling, 2016). Another business theory is the stakeholder management...
Euthanasia is a multifaceted issue that cannot be viewed unequivocally. On the one hand, one can always agree that people themselves have the right to dispose of their own lives, but there are several issues to consider. Until medicine has found a miraculous cure for all diseases, which relieves suffering,...
The problem of euthanasia lies at the intersection of a huge complex of disciplines – medicine, law, religion, philosophy – and the full discussion of it requires the participation of specialists from all these fields. Euthanasia is made by the person or his close relatives. Nevertheless, it is an effective...
Terminal illnesses cause unbearable pain and suffering to individuals. After the diagnosis process, some patients are found to have health conditions that have no cure and are subject to agony. In such scenarios, an individual, relatives, and the doctor may decide to analyze the chances of survival and the anguish...
Definition of the Problem Inside the medical environment, a variety of challenges may occur during the course of work, resulting in a lack of regard for the intended communities’ well-being. Some of these issues may be avoided if preventative actions were taken. However, some of the problems occur with little...
Patient privacy and the confidential information storage about their health appear to be moral ethical standards that physicians should monitor adherence to. There are situations where the doctor has the right to hide information about the patient’s health from themselves, thus seeking consent to treatment procedures without sufficient knowledge of...
There are many different sorts of obstacles that prevent people from receiving aid. For example, shame, a refusal to acknowledge they need help, cultural differences, and a reluctance to think they need therapy may all make it difficult for people to confess they have a problem. Human services have developed...
Human services typically consist of three primary roles such as offering direct service, performing administrative work, and community involvement. It is expected that human service professionals follow the responsibilities of evaluating and identifying client or community needs, creating a treatment or intervention plan, and implementing the plan. Human service professionals...
According to the general definition, euthanasia is the interruption of the life of a terminally ill person. Its purpose is to stop the patient’s torment with their consent or with the permission of loved ones. The medical definition of euthanasia states that it is the practice or method of performing...
Introduction Physician-assisted suicide has been a subject of numerous debates for as long as it has been available. Although both euthanasia and PAS strive to relieve the patient of the unbearable pain he feels, the latter is the practice of aiding one with committing suicide rather than deliberately ending someone’s...
In the present day, according to international standards, all human subjects should be obligatorily protected in the case of their participation in research. However, the guiding principles of ethics and humanity in this sphere were seriously corrupted in the past. “Caring corrupted: The killing nurses of the Third Reich” addresses...
A quality and successful healthcare is based on customer satisfaction and improvement in the positive outcomes of the patient. Due to the thriving trends in technology in healthcare, there is client empowerment. The sick individuals tend to look for the best medical care available, and at times, the healthcare system...
Ways of providing medical services are constantly developing and changing to become better and more successful in caring for the population’s health. Such an aspect of medicine as telehealth involves using telecommunication technologies for various health services. Telehealth is aimed at medical care, training providers and patients, providing information, communication...
Introduction The issue of racial disparities is still relevant in modern society, despite several special protection laws and the ongoing fight for racial equality. The disparities could be identified in workplaces as well as healthcare systems and services. This paper will discuss the history behind racial discrimination, identify federal laws...
Given the multifaceted nature of consumer health and its moral and constitutional underpinnings, both moral and constitutional concerns must be considered. Regarding this, the undermanaged pain case of an 85-year-old widow admitted in a care institution suffering from significant osteoarthritic and osteoporotic pain proves to go against the legal and...
Euthanasia is defined as the intentional conduct of painlessly ending the life of a person suffering from a painful and eternal disease to let go of the suffering and pain. The definition applies in general terms and in medicine (Cioffi, 2019). Euthanasia is derived from the Greek word euthanatos that...
Vital organs refer to the human body parts that play a key role in someone’s life. When vital organs stop functioning, the death process begins, and depending on the organ, an individual can die in a range of five minutes (Cioffi, 2016). Some examples of vital organs include the heart,...
Summary and Explanations of Legal and Ethical Responsibilities The issue of managing a patient’s pain in a medical environment elucidates several legal and ethical issues worth a discussion. Physicians owe patients various ethical and legal duties during pain management treatment (Brennan et al., 2019). For instance, ethics and laws require...
Ethical decision-making in the nursing practice is an integral part of all of their activities every day. Ethics permeates the nursing profession, affecting virtually every action, as this vocation itself is primarily guided by the concept of not harming in any way. Taking into account not only the desires but...
Introduction Christianity and postmodern relativism have always shown significant differences. These distinctions are more refined in the dimensions of spirituality and ethics in healthcare. In general, the perception of Christianity is based on religion whereas that of postmodern relativism has various subject matters which obliterate the viewpoint of the absolute...
Research ethics may be defined as a specific set of ethical principles that should be considered by investigators while conducting research. In general, the history of research ethics implies the history of its codification” in scientific codes of conduct such as the Nuremberg Code (1947) and the Declaration of Helsinki...
Human civilization has thrived on this planet for centuries. With the need to coexist, human beings have rules that govern society, mitigating right from wrong. Ethics is anchored on the moral standards followed as a civilization. Depending on cultures and beliefs, ethics differ from one community to another. Ideas on...
Introduction Nowadays, the ethical dilemma surrounding the moral status of unborn children seems to attract much of the global media’s attention. Although the controversy surrounding abortions is nothing new, the recent developments in embryonic stem cell research urge the scientific community to start an active discussion of the place fetuses...
Step 1: Identify the problem The stakeholders involved are the sick minor, two divorced parents, and the nurse who is suppose to commerce the treatment of the minor following the meningitis diagnosis. The mother of the minor opposes the proposed treatment or religious grounds while the father is supporting the...
Issue Overview High rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and unwanted pregnancies among adolescents Condoms are one the most effective methods of contraception Condom availability programs (CAPs) began in the 1990s (“Condom availability programs,” 2019) Positive effects Controversies Condom Distribution in High Schools as an Ethical Issue Controversies about whether...
Bioethical principles in medical experiments are vitally important, but not every participant understands the related risks. Miss Evers’ Boys, a 1997 American film, demonstrates the disregard of human rights in medicine. The film is based on a true story of the long-lasting Tuskegee experiment, conducted by a group of specialists,...
People develop different attitudes towards euthanasia and its legalization importance. They use many reasons to support this idea for terminally ill patients to stop their suffering and stay autonomous. About 72% of Americans believe in the necessity of lifting the ban (as cited in Lane, 2019). Despite a variety of...
Code of ethics implies given principles formulated by an organization to guide professionals to conduct their business by established fundamental values and expected standards. In nursing, the code helps in shaping professional behavior by assisting nurses to distinguish between right and wrong when making their decisions (Park, 2012). This paper...
Any person working in the healthcare system should be familiar with the current ethical, legal, and professional frameworks to provide high-quality care. It is also essential to be able to review one’s performance within the team to find ways of improvement. This reflective account will discuss standard 6 of proficiency...
Introduction In medicine, end of life care is the kind of healthcare that a patient receives during his or her last days of life (Ellershaw & Ward, 2003). This may also refer to the care given to the terminally ill individuals whose conditions have deteriorated to an advanced condition or...
Introduction Suicide, whether assisted, unassisted, or aided, is a common issue affecting practitioners in nursing, clinical and biomedical fields (Bandman & Bandman, 2012). Although physician or nurse-assisted suicide has been the major topic of debate as far as ethical, moral, and legal aspects are concerned, nurses are increasingly encountering the...
Introduction In nursing, end-of-life care comprises healthcare services that nurses provide to patients with terminal illnesses and dying patients. Given that patients deserve respect during their life and death, nurses play a central role in promoting their dignity by complying with legal stipulations and professional ethics. In the provision of...
The issue regarding euthanasia seems to be controversial and can be viewed from different perspectives. The ethical issues associated with this problem are related to finding the answer to the question of whether it is appropriate and up to a human being to decide to end a life of a...
Patients’ right to information Under the medical code of ethics, healthcare providers are under an obligation to provide truthful information to patients. In complying with the disclosure requirement, the doctors ought to inform the patient about the treatment to be availed and the side effects of such treatment. Failure to...
Introduction Telling the truth to a patient regarding diagnosis, whether desirable or devastating, is pertinent in the healthcare practice since it fosters trust and respect for the affected patient. Patients have much vested trust in their healthcare providers. They may lose this trust if they discover or suspect that a...
The treatment of patients, especially in the context of life and death, requires a determination of their moral status. The concept implies “moral ranking based on characteristics or attributes that tell us whether a being has certain rights or basic welfare interests” (Beckwith & Thornton, 2020, p. 504). Thus, such...
Introduction Nurses are key players in the health care industry and their services are critical to the delivery of health care services to the population. Professional guidelines oblige nurses to give safe, competent, and comprehensive care to the patient. Even so, nurses are at times faced with ethical issues in...
Ethical Dilemma Although the representatives of healthcare services are obliged to strive for the benefit of the patient and provide adequate treatment (Corrigan & Gorski, 2012), the patient or their guardians may be free to refuse treatment because of their personal beliefs according to the U.S. regulations (Demakis, 2011), even...
Why is Ms. Robaczynski’s act a killing? Mary Rose Robaczynski, a nurse from the case, has disconnected the respirator of her comatose patient Harry Gessner and was charged with murder. From the medical point of view, Ms. Robaczynski has committed involuntary passive euthanasia. Nevertheless, undoubtedly her act was a killing....
Introduction Proponents of euthanasia assert that a patient has the right to self-determination and have the right to choose to be assisted to end life because of pain and suffering. However, that is directly opposed to the belief held in the society that nobody has a right to end life,...
Background Contraceptive failure is defined as when conception occurs during a period of contraceptive method use. An unwanted pregnancy is defined as a conception that occurs during the time when the woman was using a contraceptive method (Mattenson 1995). Contraceptive failure rates depend on the method of contraception use preferred....
Introduction In many cases, terminally ill patients experience a great deal of pain and they feel guilty of being a burden to their families. They find no reason to continue suffering and make their families suffer yet they will finally die. There are cases where such patients request their healthcare...
Introduction to the Case The case study introduces the story of Judie, who has been the nurse manager for the last ten years, and now she feels frustrated with the work to be done. She, as a nurse, suffers from staffing cuts and the solutions made regardless the interests and...
Doctors and other medical practitioners supporting euthanasia do so from a particular ethical and theoretical understanding. Physician-assisted suicide can be looked at from the medical practitioner’s side, the patient’s family side, and the patient’s side. The debate surrounding euthanasia is about morality and, sometimes, the feasibility of the practice in...
Research involving human subjects is an integrated part of medical science. Apart from its practical necessity, it involves profound ethical considerations. The videos on the topic stress the importance of protecting human test subjects with the attention to voluntary participation, safety, just distribution of burdens and benefits, and informed consent....
Abstract This paper discusses the reasons why doctors have limited time with patients and the effect this has on the patient. The increased workload and tight schedule imposed on the doctor leads to reduced interaction with the patient. The patient experiences doubt due to the apparent lack of time by...
Introduction Nurses play a crucial role in the health care provision industry. Through their professional knowledge and skills, nurses provide health care services that enable patients to recover and regain their well-being. Nurses provide a wide array of services to patients and some of these services might lead to a...
Social media websites have become an integral part of people’s lives, which has implications for professionalism and ethics. Sometimes, specialists forget to carefully observe ethical values when using their social media accounts and it can contribute to legal problems and even discredit representatives of some professions. This paper discusses unethical...
Introduction There are situations when people should make difficult moral decisions. In nursing, such ethical dilemmas occur frequently. As seen in the case of assisted suicide, also known as euthanasia, ethical issues in nursing involve situations when nurses have to choose between competing values. Extended research on euthanasia is developed...