Ethics is one of the most important parts of the healthcare industry, and every medical worker must understand what role ethical principles take and why they are crucial in this sphere. Ethics is closely related to morality and the choices that greatly impact doctors’ and patients’ lives. This term usually undertakes religion, culture, and region as every part of the world has diverse visions of ethics. This essay will outline the main ethical principles and cover the effect of the four-point ethical model of leadership on the personal learning experience.
Ethical principles do not guide people to make correct choices, and they do not show the right or wrong sides of decision-making. However, they present information about what should be evaluated while making decisions and how these aspects might affect human life. There are seven types of ethical principles which are equally important in the healthcare industry. Beneficence is the first crucial principle that is responsible for the correct attitude to patients. This type of ethics considers all interests of individuals and usually meets positive outcomes in a treatment process.
The second type of ethical principle is called non-maleficence, and the main mission of this idea is to protect patients from harm. Moreover, non-maleficence requires healthcare workers to stay competitive in their work and with colleagues and patients. The information in this principle should have a truthful context and be secured. The third ethical principle, autonomy, says that it is important to respect the choices of every individual and avoid infringement of human rights. Furthermore, this principle includes confidentiality which is crucial in building personal boundaries and freedom from extra interest from other people.
Informed consent is also included in the list of ethical principles, and this part is responsible for good decision-making and a competent understanding of the area where the principle is applied. Laws issued by states are not comparable to ethical considerations, and every healthcare worker who follows all ethical principles must understand this issue and be able to apply both areas to the working process. Truth-telling is also ethics that should take a high position in decision-making. This principle is vital in the relationship between healthcare workers and patients, and it asks specialists to tell the truth even when the information might bring a negative reaction from patients. For instance, cancer patients want to know more information about their health issues to ensure that nothing remains secret.
Providing full information is ethically correct, and every professional healthcare worker must know it. Every patient wants to feel safe, and the confidentiality principle helps them feel secure. Doctors and nurses should store patients’ information in safe places to increase the level of trust. Nowadays, one of the common methods of storing private information is secured medical databases with limited access. The last ethical principle is called justice, and it is responsible for appropriate treatment plans provided to all patients. Justice includes an equal attitude to colleagues and patients, and the legality of the authority supplied to the medical industry workers.
The use of ethical principles helps in personal learning as they usually guide individuals to achieve the working goal and stay correct in the decision-making. All actions done in the healthcare industry have great value, and professionals should consider ethics to make sure that every decision is made according to medical principles. Moreover, ethical principles do not allow people to lie, and many healthcare workers usually feel uncomfortable when they want to keep the truth. The work in the medical sphere should not be oriented toward payment. The team should love what they are doing and always be ready to help others. However, individuals who have a great passion for their work will never use their knowledge to provide their families with extra support which is not available to other patients. Understanding ethical principles expand the human mind, and its basis might help solve medical conflicts or educate other people to be ethically correct. The principles can also be applied to the living area as communication is not usually related to work.
ACHE ethics help create a self-assessment plan and define positive changes in the personality or actions and negative sides that should be improved. People should constantly analyze what ethical actions they do and how they influence their personal life and work. For instance, by understanding what activities make people role models for ethical behavior or how individuals can be more successful in decision-making using ethics principles, people can find their positive and negative sides. Moreover, ACHE ethics help build a good relationships with colleagues, friends, and partners as ethically correct people are always attractive and strive to create communication with such individuals.
Ethics is usually based on social norms and principles. Ethical leadership is one of the key parts of ethics, and it consists of trust, openness, and communication. This type of leadership usually includes four parts which are integrity, accountability, fairness, and respect. The integrity part of the leadership presents the reliability of directors and workers. In the healthcare industry, the trust between doctors, nurses, and patients should always stay high, and integrity plays a huge role in this mission. Also, accountability takes a high position in leadership as leaders of every team should be responsible for all their actions, be role models for their subordinates and motivate them. Fairness and respect are considered crucial parts of ethical leadership as they help workers be sure that they are treated equally and that employers do not discriminate against anyone. A positive attitude from lead doctors helps to create trust and reliability between patients and doctors.
The Healthcare industry plays a significant role in every human life, and every medical worker needs to follow basic ethical principles. This crucial area requires deliberate and correct decisions from doctors and nurses. Ethics influence these choices as they create a reliable relationship between patients and healthcare workers. People who get in difficult situations when they need the help of medical professionals are always expecting honesty and judiciousness. In these cases, the medical team should show their leadership skills based on ethical ideas to ensure that they do not break personal borders. Consequently, every medical student should be able to evaluate the personal experience of using ethical principles and always be ready to use these practices in their profession and daily routine.
Reference List
Iserson K. V. Healthcare Ethics During a Pandemic. West J Emerg Med. 2020;21(3):477-483.
Runciman B, Merry A, Walton M. Safety and Ethics in Healthcare. London, England: CRC Press; 2017.
Varkey B. Principles of Clinical Ethics and Their Application to Practice. Med Princ Pract. 2021;30:17-28.