Professional Ethics - Research Paper Example

If he decides to send him to the asylum, then he is snatching away his independence but is reducing risk that the patient can pose to himself and others. Thus, the physician has to face a conflict between what is legal and what is ethical. Personal Values and Professional Ethics • The physician interacting with the patient should be honest and straightforward, and should deal with the patient in a candid fashion. • The patient should also be honest with the physician. • The patient’s consent should be considered before sharing, selling or disclosing his personal information.

• The patient’s privacy should be maintained by blocking unauthorized access to his health records and personal data. • Informed Consent is about having the capable patient take part in making decisions about his healthcare and treatment process (Wear, 1992). The patient should be well informed about all the circumstances and his wishes and judgment has to be considered by the practitioner. Ethical Theories and Principles According to Rainbow (2002), “ethical theories and principles are the foundations of ethical analysis because they are the viewpoints from which guidance can be obtained along the pathway to a decision.

” Ethical Principles Beneficence. . Justice. This principle states that physicians make ethical decisions that are fair to the patient and all those who are involved in the treatment process. The decisions should be made on logical bases. Ethical Theories Deontology. This theory focuses on that physicians should stick to their responsibilities when they are facing a dilemma in making ethical decisions. This will help them to make consistent decisions while adhering to their ethical obligations.

Utilitarianism. This theory helps the physician to make choices whose consequences are better for the patient. He will make a decision that will yield greatest benefit to all involved. Rights. This theory respects and protects the rights of people as enforced by the society itself. Casuist. This theory enables the physicians to make decision about an ethical dilemma by comparing it to similar dilemmas and their consequences that might have happened in the past. Virtue. This theory is about judging a person through his values and standards rather than by his actions.

Application to My Current Practice My current practice as a health practitioner is providing healthcare to e-consumers. I apply all ethical theories and principles because I aim to provide beneficence to my e-patients with least harm I can inflict upon them. I respect their decisions and stick to my ethical obligations. I strictly follow the Casuist theory whenever I am in some kind of a dilemma. For example, once I had to prescribe a diabetes patient to start insulin injections but I found out that his body was too frail to bear the injections twice a day.

So, I referred to previous case histories of my patients to find out a