Dulawan,Natalie

The Principle of Solidarity

To be solid means to be firmly united. It follows that solidarity implies unity or fellowship, arising
from common responsibility and interest. Sense of solidarity or unity characterizes quality standing of
any profession like nursing. It relates to the ability of its members to organize and standardize, the
professional values of competence, autonomy, authority, and accountability. Toward this end, there
arises the need for a cohesive professional association to solidify harmonious fellowship or relationship
of its members who work together to meet the health care needs of society. With the principle of
solidarity, one-for-all and all-for-one policy is tall order.

Ross Ethics (Mappes and de Grazia, 2002: 24-27)

W.D. Ross is an English philosopher. In his book entitled, The Rights and the Good (1930), he
underscores his concern to provide a justifiable account of “cases of conscience,” or ethical situations
confronting people with a pervasive conflict or duties. Which duty take priority over other pressing
duties? To solve this dilemma and provide a defensible account of conflict-of-duty situations, he deems
it necessary to introduce the idea of “prima facie duty”. He, otherwise, intends to call it conditional
duty, which is, on its face, prevailing until overcame or overridden have no single basis, but arise or
sprung from several “morally significant relations” such as nurse-patient, physician-nurse, lawyer-client,
employer-employee, promisor-promisee, and teacher-student relationship. Each of these relationships
is the basis or foundation of prima facie duty. Where one is faced with two or more competing prima
facie duties, he/she has to make a reflective, “considered decision” and come up with only one of
these duties. This binding duty is the actual duty.

Accordingly, Ross proposes seven (7) classifications or divisions of prima facie duties. They are
as presented in the table below:

Prima Facie Duties

Classifications/Divisions
1. Duties of fidelity
2. Duties of reparation
Description/Meaning Illustrative Examples
 Fidelity is related to the  Professional
concept of steadfast responsibilities/social
faithfulness or loyalty. roles of:
The duties include  Physician as
keeping promises, physician
honoring contracts and  Nurse as nurse
telling the truth. They rest  Teacher as
on the person’s previous teacher
acts.
 Reparation is the act or  A return the cellphone
fact of giving and says sorry to B, the
satisfaction or victim
compensation for wrong  C admits cheating and
or injury done. The duties accepts punishment for
include rectifying the the same
wrong perpetrated,
returning the goods,
wealth, or any property
stolen, restoring the
reputation of someone
slandered, and/or

3. Duties of gratitude
4. Duties of beneficence
5. Duties of non-maleficence
6. Duties of justice
7. Duties self-improvement
paying damages for
injuries suffered.
 Gratitude is thankfulness
or a desire to do a favor
in return. The duties rest
upon previous acts of
another person, and
include beneficial
services provided by
them. The principle of
reciprocity applies.
 Beneficence is the
practice of doing good,
or an act of kindness.
The duties include going
or searching out to the
needy and making a
difference in their life.
 Non-maleficence is the
act of not doing evil or
injuring harm to others.
The duty includes not to
make the condition of
others being worse or
difficult.
 Justice connotes just
conduct, or giving and
receiving what one
deserves. The duties
include fair distribution
of benefits based on
merits, and rectifying
unjust patterns of
distribution.
 Include the duty to
make better one’s
character, mind, or the
like by his/her own effort.
The divine Provider helps
those who help
themselves, or the sick
gets well if he/she
cooperates with the
health care provider.
 If one has provided
quality service to others
when they are in need,
the latter stand under a
duty to reciprocate
service for the former
when the same is in
need.
 To visit the sick, the
prisoners, or the victims
of calamities
 To share one’s bounty to
the needy.
 The duties of not to kill,
to inflict corporal
punishment, to commit
arson, and/or defraud
others.
 If a nurse works eight (8)
hours plus overtime,
he/she must receive the
agreed legal
compensation plus
overtime pay. It is giving
what is due him/her.
 A nurse keeps on
studying things related
to his/her profession,
attends capacity-
building seminars, and
takes graduate studies.
Major Bioethical Principle

Appropriate identification, analysis interpretation, and resolution of health problems or issues are
made possible and facilitated by way of reference to relevant bioethical principle. Mappes and De
Grazia (2002) suggested and came up with four major set of principles, namely:

1) the principle of respect for autonomy; 3) the principle of beneficence; and

2) the principle of non-maleficence; 4) the principle of justice