Ethical Analysis of Healthcare - Essay Example

Ethical Analysis At the very center of ethics that deal with healthcare, the principles are in the sense of what is rightand what is wrong, people’s attitude towards the privileges that other people do have and the duties fortunate people owe to some group who are not in a good position in terms of their health, social and cultural issues. This paper is going to analyze a current social and cultural issue in the United States that leaders face in healthcare, in addition to ethics and ethical responsibilities in healthcare facilities. Ethical Analysis Introduction Code of ethics and ethical responsibilities within healthcare in United States is to serve and hold the basic rule of conduct for the members. It consists of standards of ethical behavior in the professional relationships, which all individuals have within the group. The relationship can be stated as that of colleagues, patients, and other organization and the community as a whole (Corey, Schneider & Callanan, 2011). It incorporates the behavior in line with the right ethics that govern a person’s behavior, particularly when it relates to the responsibility and individuality of the healthcare individuals. People face very many problems and issues that have ethical importance in the community. Having to do the right thing is always a challenge like in the case of Dr. Spitzer who has through years studied the part of sexual orientation and hoped to cure the disorder of the homosexuals (Carey, 2012). With increase in population and different norms of livelihood, healthcare providers and organizers are having the difficulty of coming face to face with the choice that mostly depend on moral and ethical standards than on a therapeutic knowledge. In this situation, it is not whether homosexuals are living as normal people, but because the therapists have taken that state to be a disorder that requires being cured (Carey, 2012). For example, there may be some western bioethical principles that are in opposition of certain cultural values and beliefs. In most cases, they are the source of ethical and cultural dilemmas. With the changing demographics in the In the United States, therapists encounter people having dissimilar values and conviction concerning health (Corey, Schneider & Callanan, 2011). As a result, all forms of therapeutic interaction are like a cross-cultural interaction. Many of the medical groups in United States have condemned these kind of practices that are conducted by therapists. The American medical association has claimed that these kinds of practices do not work at all, but instead they cause some mode of impairment (Carey, 2012). The leaders in the health care facilities come to face these problems that hinder them from either improving on their researches, or therapies that help in solving the different problems, that affect the society or specific individuals. These aspects affect them in life because they try as much as possible to solve these ethical problems (Corey, Schneider & Callanan, 2011). Healthcare issue Health care ethics can also be stated as medical ethics or bioethics. This is a set of honorable principles, values, and standards that gives guidance to individuals in hours when choices have to be made about the health care in medical facilities (Carey, 2012). Having better judgment about principled aspect of health care decisions helps individuals to come up with choices that are correct, excellent, fair, and just. The issue of gay marriage was shaking the politics of the nation. Dr. Robert L. Spitzer, who was one of the great people of the modern psychiatry, had done a study that endorsed the utilization of reparative therapy to “treat” homosexuality for those individuals who were strongly aggravated to transform (Carey, 2012). As per now, the state of California legislature was holding a discussion on a bill whether to forbid the therapy as being unsafe (Corey, Schneider & Callanan, 2011). Americans both as individuals and the society, expect a better health care system. They want the highest quality that there is to offer. Excellent care offers better benefits in the healthcare of people. They also need freedom of choice in healthcare and a chance to be able to choose by themselves what kind of care they should get, where to get it and from whom they should get it from. This gives them control over their own health. Some of the leaders get blocked by this belief in conducting their researches and also banned from doing some researches (Corey, Schneider & Callanan, 2011). A doctor may end up refusing to undertake the care of a patient because the medical condition of that very situation is not within his competence, but not for the reason of the sexual point of reference of the patient. How the issue is handled Culture gets to influence how people cope with the problems that face them. The manner, in which these services are planned, needs to be culturally sensitive to different groups. Some therapists thought of this to be a disorder. Later on, it was classified as an illness, which it was named as a sociopathic personality disturbance. Several other therapists tried to seek for treatment for this kind of illness (Carey, 2012). In addition, people objected gay marriages and held protests and distracted some of the meetings that the behavioral therapists had been attending to discuss the matter. Dr. Spitzer began to think if this state is taken as a mental disorder, then what makes it one? In his study, he contrasted other medical conditions that were described as disorders, like alcoholism and depressions. He was able to discover that other conditions usually caused distress and other impairment, which was not the case with homosexuality (Carey, 2012). A series of discussion kicked off, where Dr. Spitzer was against some senior psychiatrists. The outcome This form of therapy, which was called sexual reorientation, is in light with the argument that some individuals are born with bisexual characteristics. There were so many rivals from different organizations who later joined and followed Dr. Spitzer’s ideas (Carey, 2012). National Association for research and therapy of homosexuality in south California decided to come up with alliances together with communally conventional advocacy groups. Together they started a strong campaign. People who had a shared perspective formed a group and came up with alternative policies that suited their religion, culture and political views. The doctor conducts an interview with the individuals that had undergone the therapy. Many of the participants gave the report that the change occurred from a homosexual orientation to a heterosexual orientation. When these researches are allowed to be conducted, the tests may eventually come up with the exact structure within the humans that influences the sexual orientation. It was later discovered that the study had serious problems. The way it was being done was based on the things that individuals could remember years before and it did not include any particular form of therapy (Carey, 2012). Several people tried to stop this and also urged the therapist not to publish his work. His work did not go through the review process because of the code of ethics that did renounce the study and claimed it to be morally wrong (Carey, 2012). The therapist could not be able to control how his study could be interpreted by the other people. Some other individuals could change their stories in order to suit their needs and moods. This posed as very big challenge to the therapists in order to convince the community of the benefits that this form of therapy could bring to the community in general and also the people experiencing this kind of problems (Carey, 2012). The society is afraid of the implications that the changes and these studies may bring about. The rational people, when presented with the evidence that the state of homosexuality is biological, can continue to discriminate the gay community. How I can deal with the issue as a leader As a leader, I should gain the courage to stand up for the right ethical beliefs and moral principles. Homosexuality is not a form of illness that needs to be cured, but a form of orientation. An individual can be changed if they are willing to. The society should not treat these individuals as outcasts but rather help them to accept themselves no matter what their sexuality is (Morrison & Monagle, 2009). They are people who are willing to undergo the therapy and be “treated”; it is not a bad thing to seek help. The doctor should continue and seek the best therapy in helping these homosexuals. Support groups can be formed that would help in turning these gay individuals into straight men. The supportive groups will ensure the people get counseled (Morrison & Monagle, 2009). In the United States congress, there is proposed legislation that protects such individuals from discrimination. Experienced therapists have the capabilities of helping people understand the real cause of the trauma that they are experiencing, which usually bring about the same sex attraction and work in therapy to resolve the pain (Morrison & Monagle, 2009). Conclusion Given that homosexuality is not among the known disorders or any other form of illness, it does not necessitate for any treatment. There is no any medical way of altering the orientation of sex genre of an individual. The practices so far conducted have posed a serious threat to the health and the livelihood of the affected people. The society does not agree with these facts. Those people that are not certain with their sexuality and try to get help from other people in society who are in any powerful position should not be treated as a sick person who is seeking a cure. There is no basis for the denial to any individual the privileges and rights because gender or sexual orientation. The doctors who prescribe these drugs to the gay people should be allowed to conduct their forms of therapy. A homosexual person could have inherited the gene, or they did not choose that kind of orientation by their own free will. Therefore, they should not be treated in any manner that is different like the way the other people are being treated or judged. On the other hand, the community should take a different path and decide not to accept homosexual behavior, even if they prove it to be part of the genes which is natural. Furthermore, homosexuality can be accepted as a biological truth but still gets rejected socially. This is on the fact that it lies outside the traditions and norms of our way of life. These people should be accepted the way they are. References: Carey, B., (2012). Psychiatry giant sorry for backing gay ‘cure’. Retrieved on 24th Dec 2012 from: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/19/health/dr-robert-l-spitzer-noted-psychiatrist-apologizes-for-study-on-gay-cure.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 Corey, G., Schneider, M., & Callanan, P. (2011). Issues and ethics in the helping professions. Belmont, California: Brooks/Cole publishers. Morrison, E., & Monagle, J. (2009). Health care ethics: critical issues for the 21st century. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett Publishers Read More