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Ethics
In Health Care

By
Danish Latif

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 Ethics
 Ethics, also known as moral
philosophy, is a branch of philosophy
that addresses questions about morality—
that is, concepts such as good and evil,
right and wrong, good and bad etc

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 Ethics are not…
 Ethics is not the same as feelings
 Ethics is not religion
 Ethics is not following the law
 Ethics is not following culturally accepted norms
 Ethics is not science

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 Ethics are…
 Moral Principles
 What is good and bad
 What is right and wrong
 Based on value system
 Ethical norms are not universal – depends on
the sub culture of the society

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 Ethics refers to standards of behavior that tell
us how human beings ought to act in many
situations in which they find themselves as
friends, parents, children, citizens,
businesspeople, teachers, professionals, and so
on.

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 Healthcare professionals
ethical obligations
Ethics
 Standard of conduct or code of behavior
for a person or group of people
 Involves:
 Personal values
 Professional standards expected of a
healthcare professional
 Organizational standards expected of an
employee

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 Aspects of Ethics

 Ability to determine
“right” from “wrong”

 Commitment to do
what is right

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 Personal Ethics

Ethical Foundations:
 Personal values

 Dependable
 Honest
 Responsible
 Trustworthy

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 History of ethics

 Medical ethics may be traced to guidelines on

the duty of physicians such as the Hippocratic
oath

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 Physician must recognize responsibility to
patients first and foremost, as well as to
society, to other health professionals and to
self. These are not laws, but standards of
conduct which define the essentials of
honorable behavior for the physician

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 Professional Ethics
Code of Ethics
 Specific for each healthcare career
 Two components
1. Principles of Ethics
 Standards of exemplary professional behavior for all
members of the association
2. Rules of Ethics
 Mandatory, direct standards of minimally acceptable
professional conduct

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 Four basic Principles of Medical
Ethics

 Autonomy
 Beneficence
 Non maleficience
 Justice

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 Autonomy
 Patient has freedom of thought, intention and
action when making decisions regarding health
care procedures
 For a patient to make a fully informed decision,
she/he must understand all risks and benefits
of the procedure and the likelihood of success.
 Always respect the autonomy of the patient -
then the particular patient is free to choose.

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 Such respect is not simply a matter of attitude,
but a way of acting so as to recognize and even
promote the autonomous actions of the patient.
 The autonomous person may freely choose
loyalties or systems of religious belief that may
adversely affect him.
 The patient must be informed clearly the
consequences of his action that may affect him
adversely.
 Health care provider should give greater
priority to the respect for patient autonomy
than to the other duties.
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 Beneficence
 The practitioner should act in “the best
interest” of the patient - the procedure be
provided with the intent of doing good to the
patient .
 This needs health care provider to,
develop and maintain skills and knowledge by
continually updating training
consider individual circumstances of all
patients
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 Non Maleficence
 Above all, do no harm,“ – Make sure that the
procedure does not harm the patient or others
in society.
 When interventions undertaken by physicians

create a positive outcome while also potentially

doing harm it is known as the "double effect."
Eg,. the use of morphine in the dying patient.
eases pain and suffering while hastening the
demise through suppression of the respiratory
drive
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 Medical Malpractice
 An act or omission by a health care provider
that deviates from accepted standards of
practice in the medical community which
causes injury to the patient.

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 Justice
 Treating people fairly

 Not favouring some individuals/groups over

others

 Acting in a non–discriminatory

 Respect for peoples rights

 Respect for the law

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 Ethical issues in healthcare
 We usually think of the ‘big’ issues
e.g. definition of life, what is a person, quality
of life, prolonging life, ending life, human
rights.

 But day to day ethical issues can involve:

 Respecting people
 Treating people with dignity
 Treating people fairly
 Supporting patient’s choices

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 Organizational Ethics
 Moral values that guide the way corporations
make decisions
 Governed by
 Legislation/laws
 Professional codes
 Individual values
 Never compromise your ability to perform in
the best interest of the organization

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 Healthcare professionals
ethical obligations
Recognize Illegal and Unethical Behavior
 Report any event that has adverse affects on the
health, safety or welfare of any person within the
healthcare agency
 Healthcare professional must
 Obey the law
 Follow code of ethics for his/her job description
 Treat everyone with respect

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