Serious Health Issues and Ethical Predicament - Research Paper Example

? Nursing Patient Safety (College) Patient Safety Introduction Despite the growing governmental concerns and funding, the quality of modern health care is still affected by numerous factors. Evidently, the problem can be mainly attributed to the moral decline of medical practitioners. Physicians and other health care providers are widely criticized for being highly concerned about personal economic gains rather than their professional objectives. This paper tends to conduct a root cause analysis of a well known medical error that raised serious health issues and ethical predicament. The Incident Bishop (Baltimore Sun, 2011) reports that a Maryland woman suffered serious health difficulties as navy doctors left surgical instruments inside her abdomen. The portion of a Gyrus Forceps, a disposable surgical instrument, broke off in the belly of the victim while doctors at the Portsmouth Naval Medical Center in Virginia removing her uterus in February 2008. The woman, Mrs. Williams faced severe health difficulties following the surgery. Mrs. Williams said that she had frequently consulted doctors at the general surgery clinic in Portsmouth and complained of pain and pressure. However, surgeons could not find the actual cause of her abdominal issues. As per the reports at last, she went to National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda in July 2008 and described of “unbelievable abdominal pain, nausea, and near-fainting” (Baltimore Sun). From a CT scan, it was discovered that there had been a foreign object in Mrs. Williams’ pelvis. The detected foreign object in her pelvis measured 3.5 ?0.4?03 cm and it was later removed by another surgery (Baltimore Sun). The woman filed a $2 million negligence lawsuit against the United States and another negligence suit against the makers of the disposable Gyrus Forceps. In her suit, she said that she had been hospitalized several times and “had undergone painful procedures to investigate and treat her symptoms” (Baltimore Sun). Analysis of the Incident Evidently this dangerous incident is the result of the careless act of some navy doctors. Although US government argued that the quality of the forceps was poor, the surgeons cannot dispose their responsibilities easily. Doctors have undeniable responsibility on their patients’ health until the patients recover perfectly. According to Rogers (2002), the quality of doctor-patient interaction becomes the foundation for medical relationships which also greatly contributes to patient’s autonomy and interests. Although Mrs. Williams had repeatedly visited general surgery clinic in Portsmouth in order to get rid of her health issues, the doctors did not try to examine her problems in detail. The US medical sector could detect the broken part of forceps in her abdomen only seventeen months after it had been left inside her body. This incident obviously raises some ethical questions. The Modeling and Role Modeling nursing concept, which is one of the major grand theories, states that nursing is a “self-care model based on the client’s perception of the world and adaptations to stressors” (Nursing theories). Although it is a nursing concept, it broadly addresses the whole health care practitioners’ responsibility of giving great emphasis on clients’ perceptions. As stated, ‘facilitation, nurturance, and unconditional acceptance’ are the major elements that determine the quality of the care giving (Frisch, 2006, p.117). However, in this case, the medical practitioners did nothing either to reduce the patient’s stress or to nurture her. The seriousness of this incident increases as it comes to a group of navy doctors who are appointed only after a series of recruitment procedures that verify all qualitative as well as professional potentials of the candidates. This poor performance of the navy doctors raises some further questions regarding the quality of the public health care sector. Here, the Gyrus Forceps Company has also not taken a favorable stance towards the woman. It is obvious that this case falls under the category of medical errors. To illustrate, Mrs. Williams repeatedly consulted doctors to diagnose her diseases for a period of seventeen months, which evidently caused her financial burden. The problem further affected her career life and worsened the economic conditions. In addition, she suffered extreme pain during several diagnostic procedures. The severe mental stress she had undergone for the long period cannot be undermined in this context. Contributory Factors Bishop (Baltimore Sun, 2011) reports that the US government ironically argued in favor of the accused doctors. It seems that the government’s stance in this case makes one skeptical about its ethical perspectives on healthcare industry. Probably, this liberal approach would be the main element that contributes to such sorts incidents. Had there been an effective health care regulatory system in practice, the doctors would not have shown negligence in Mrs. Williams’ case. Similarly, the medical device providers who deliver poor quality surgical material to hospitals are also answerable to the incident. Surgeons have limitations to ensure the quality of such devices before their usage. This is not a rare case related to medical errors; a number of medical negligence cases are reported every day. For instance, The Telegraph (2011) reports the story of a two year old girl who lost her leg due to medical practitioners’ negligence; however, the girl was compensated with $2 million for the damages caused. Recommendations The case of the Maryland woman reveals that US health care system as a whole requires an effective restructuring. The United States does not have a universal healthcare policy for its citizens, due to which they spend a higher proportion of their annual income on healthcare services than any other country do. In my opinion, a free healthcare policy can ensure coverage to all class of the society and by doing so abnormal increase in health care cost, fraudulent activities, and healthcare abuse can be minimized to a great extent. The government must formulate some strict health care regulations that would prevent health care practitioners from committing unethical medical practices. For instance, the government may disqualify the doctors who are found to have performed severe medical errors. It is also advisable for the government to take steps to ensure the quality of surgical devices. For this purpose, the government may appoint a special quality assurance team that includes highly efficient and experience individuals. In the cases of medical errors, the government must impose huge fines on hospitals so that the industry as a whole would become cautious about errors. In other words, such a practice would put a moral check on other medical practitioners. The U.S. has taken some healthcare reform initiatives during the last 2-3 years. ‘Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’ and ‘Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010’ are the two initiatives taken towards the health care reform in the country. The government must provide due care to the implementation of these programs in order to improve the quality of the nation’s health care. Conclusion The above discussed case of Mrs. Williams points to the paucity of effective healthcare regulations. Evidently, from an ethical perspective, the doctors’ practice was against their professional code of conduct. The growing number of medical mishaps is the symptom of the fragmented industry. The adverse conditions prevail mainly supported by many pharmaceutical companies and private practitioners who usually take unfair advantage of the current system. In order to combat the medical mafia the U. S. healthcare system requires extensive levels of strategic renovation. It must involve essential provisions to safeguard the rights of patients with regard to decision making, treatment, and coverage. Reference Bishop, T. (March 30, 2011). Navy doctors left surgical instrument inside Maryland woman. The Baltimore Sun. retrieved from http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-03-30/health/bs-md-forceps-20110330_1_maryland-woman-navy-doctors-lawsuits Frisch, N. C. (2006). “Nursing theory in holistic nursing practice”. In Holistic nursing: A handbook for practice. Sudbury: (Eds.) B. M. Dossey & L.Keegan. Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Gammel, C. (May 23, 2011). The ten year girl awarded nearly 2 million compensation after losing both legs. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/children_shealth/8530813/Ten-year-old-girl-awarded-nearly-2-million-compensation-after-losing-both-legs.html Rogers, W. A. (2002). “Is there a moral duty for doctors to trust patients”. Journal of Medical Ethics, 28, (2). 77-80 . Tomlin, E & Swain. ( (Jan 31, 2011). Modeling and role modeling theory. Nursing theories. Retrieved from http://nursingplanet.com/theory/modeling_and_role-modeling_theory.html Read More