Health care is complex and ever changing. What makes perfect sense for one individual may bring deep-seated ethical issues for another individual. With the vast amount of possibilities expanding through research, ethical dilemmas develop and complicate the decisions we need to make for ourselves and loved ones. The varied choices regarding cancer vaccines, fraud and euthanasia will be explored.
Cancer Vaccines
The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer demonstrates a parade of polarizing ethical issues of today, but the topic of mandatory cervical cancer vaccines particularly caught my attention. I viewed the video not from the lens of a health care professional, but from the stance of a mother of a beautiful two year old little girl. As is the way of many parents, I am fiercely protective and want nothing short of the best for my daughter. Deciding what is best when it comes to mandatory vaccinations for cervical cancer is an issue being faced by parents of preteen girls all across the United States. Consequently, the commentary details the statistics behind human papillomavirus (HPV) and the correlating numbers leading to cervical cancer and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The debate comes in whether or not the vaccine should be mandatory. On one hand, as a parent, I do not like being told that my child must have the vaccine. This is a clear violation of her autonomy. On the other hand, I think of the benefit to my daughter if the majority of her peers were covered by the vaccine, ultimately protecting her via herd immunity. This is, in short, a kind of social justice (Morrison, 2010). As for as how I will address this issue with my daughter, I feel the only ethical thing to do is to implement a kind of informed consent. Although legall...
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Conclusion
In conclusion, the health care industry is discovering new technology and compounding choices with each passing year. The decisions of the current health care consumer are complex and a very personal choice. For example, cancer vaccines for HPV bring the dilemma of vaccinating minors who should have autonomy. In addition, fraud in business is muddying the waters of the health care industry, in addition to complex topics such as euthanasia. Finally, as the landscape of healthcare continues to develop, the decisions of a well informed patient and competent patient should be honored.
Works Cited
Morrison, E. (2010). Ethics in health administration: a practical approach for decision makers. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Morrison, E., & Furling, E. (2014). Health Care Ethics: Critical Issues for the 21st Century. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Today, there are so many legal dilemmas dominating trial for the courts to make a sound legal decision on whose right in a complicated situation. Despite the outcome of the case, the disagreement usually has a profound effect on the healthcare organization, and the industry as a whole. Many cases are arguments centered around if the issue is a legal or moral principle. Regardless what the situation maybe, the final decision is left to the courts to differentiate between the legality issues at hand opposed to justifying a case based on moral rules. According to Pozgar (2012), an ethical dilemma arises in situations where a choice must be made between unpleasant alternative. It can occur whenever a choice involves giving up something good and suffering something bad, no matter what course of action is taken (p. 367). In this paper, I will discuss cases that arose in the healthcare industry that have been tried and brought to justice by the United States court system.
Gedge, E., & Waluchow, W. (2012). Readings in health care ethics (2nd ed.). Toronto, Ontario: Broadview Press.
Wilson , James G. S., “Rights”, Principles of Health Care Ethics, Second Edition, eds. R.E. Ashcroft, A. Dawson, H. Draper and J.R. McMillan. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2007. pp. 239.
Denise Dudzinski, PhD, MTS, Helene Starks, PhD, MPH, Nicole White, MD, MA (2009) ETHICS IN MEDICINE. Retrieved from: http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pad.html
Thompson, I. E., Melia, K. M., & Boyd, K. M. (2006). Nursing Ethics: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier.
It is also directed, according to the code of ethics, that Healthcare executives have a fiduciary responsibility to the society and community and should act in such a way that wins their trust, confidence, and respect. Hence, it is needed that the healthcare professionals lead exemplary lives. By acting their role, they are said to be moral advocates. Every decision taken by these professionals leads to an impact on the well-being of the people; therefore, decisions should be balanced and ethical.They should safeguard the interests of every audience that they serve.
Davis J. Anne Diane Marsha and Aroskar A. Mila (2010). Ethical Dilemmas and Nursing Practice. Pearson
When one initially chooses a career path, one rarely looks at all the negatives that may be associated with that choice. Most career paths have some negatives associated with the field, but few face the moral dilemmas associated with modern healthcare. Those who choose to be in the healthcare profession today are faced with moral and ethical dilemmas that would make King Solomon tear his hair out. In many cases, doctors, and sometimes nurses, are faced with life and death decisions without the benefit of knowing the patient’s, or the patient’s family’s, wishes. However, aside from those tragic times when a patient’s wishes are unknown, healthcare professionals must always put their own morals aside, and act
Arguably, all three situations met by the end of the 20th century. The rise of managed care, the increase of health care costs, and the growing number of uninsured patients place economic and political pressures on individuals (and governments) to find a cost-containment resolution. Additionally, since the late 1970s, the medical profession has faced the dominating principle of patient independence as a challenge – first to medical paternalism and then extending even to the principle of beneficence. More so, the usage of the Internet and other global media has expanded the ability of patients to access an...
In my future role as a healthcare administrator, ethical decision making will be required to address a conflict or uncertainty regarding competing values , such as personal, professional, organizational, and societal values (Thompson, 2011). Administrators involved in this decision-making process must consider the ethical principles of justice, autonomy, beneficence, and nonmaleficence. Healthcare organizations having growing concerns over ethical issues such as:
Westrick, S. (2013). Legal and Ethical Issues in Healthcare. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Tarzian, A. J., & Force, A. C. C. U. T. (2013). Health care ethics consultation: An update on core competencies and emerging standards from the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities’ Core Competencies Update Task Force. The American Journal of Bioethics, 13(2),
Garrett, T. M., Baillie, H. W., & Garrett, R. M. (2010). Health care ethics: Principles and problems (5thed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Each year, about 2.1 million people die from vaccine-preventable diseases. Many children may not receive their necessary first year vaccinations because of lack of availability, religious beliefs, and safety concerns (Healy, Rench, and Baker 540). The dictionary definition of a vaccine is a biological preparation that improves the immunity to a certain disease (Healy, Rench, and Baker 540). Although all 50 States in the United States require children to be vaccinated to certain diseases before entering school, the states also have exemptions for these vaccinations (Lu 870). Parents often choose not to get their children immunized, and it has proven harmful to the health of the global population. It is important for parents to have their children vaccinated against diseases such as measles, mumps, and polio because it is important to promote the welfare of the human race (Parkins 439).
McGee, Glenn and Arthur L. Caplan. "Medical Ethics." Microsoft® Encarta® 98 Encyclopedia. © 1993-1997: Microsoft Corporation. CD-ROM.