Health Care Ethics Reflection
Personal Ethics Reflection Paper
Introduction
Ethical theories and principles help the medical community make moral decisions in difficult situations. However, each person has a different set of morals they abide by, including the varying ethical theories and principles. In this paper, I will discuss what theories I agree and disagree with concerning my moral framework, along with explaining what principles I think are most important.
Theories Aligned with Personal Moral Framework
I believe Kantian ethics best describes the foundation of my moral framework. According to Pence (2011), Kantianism is a person’s duty to act morally correct, regardless of the consequences. Unfortunately, I have made decisions based on the outcome of situations in the past. For instance, when I was a child, I lied to my mother about where I road my bike because I did not want to get in trouble. Because of my fear of punishment or making my mother angry, I went against what I knew to be right and lied to her. Here, my emotions ruled over my ethical decision-making skills because of a consequence. As I have matured over the years, I have realized that my ethical framework should be the basis of all my actions, not my emotions, which come and go with the wind. If I let my emotions rule over me, then I will have no foundation to stand on, therefore making many poor decisions.
Additionally, Pence goes on to say that acting off of what feels right or what is preferred by society goes against Kantianism (2011). I agree with this as well because our society would be a very dark, destructive place if everyone acted off of fleeting ideals instead of their own moral guidelines. For example, the morals I hold myself to keep me from trying to live up to what the dark part of society thinks is acceptable, such as having sexual relationships with different partners.
Furthermore, categorical imperatives are tests used to determine whether an
Introduction
Ethical theories and principles help the medical community make moral decisions in difficult situations. However, each person has a different set of morals they abide by, including the varying ethical theories and principles. In this paper, I will discuss what theories I agree and disagree with concerning my moral framework, along with explaining what principles I think are most important.
Theories Aligned with Personal Moral Framework
I believe Kantian ethics best describes the foundation of my moral framework. According to Pence (2011), Kantianism is a person’s duty to act morally correct, regardless of the consequences. Unfortunately, I have made decisions based on the outcome of situations in the past. For instance, when I was a child, I lied to my mother about where I road my bike because I did not want to get in trouble. Because of my fear of punishment or making my mother angry, I went against what I knew to be right and lied to her. Here, my emotions ruled over my ethical decision-making skills because of a consequence. As I have matured over the years, I have realized that my ethical framework should be the basis of all my actions, not my emotions, which come and go with the wind. If I let my emotions rule over me, then I will have no foundation to stand on, therefore making many poor decisions.
Additionally, Pence goes on to say that acting off of what feels right or what is preferred by society goes against Kantianism (2011). I agree with this as well because our society would be a very dark, destructive place if everyone acted off of fleeting ideals instead of their own moral guidelines. For example, the morals I hold myself to keep me from trying to live up to what the dark part of society thinks is acceptable, such as having sexual relationships with different partners.
Furthermore, categorical imperatives are tests used to determine whether an
References: American Nurses Association. (2010). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. Retrieved January 25, 2014 from http://nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/EthicsStandards/CodeofEthicsforNurses/Code-of-Ethics.pdf Bennet-Woods, D. (2005). Ethics at a glance. Regis University. Retrieved January 25, 2014, from http://rhchp.regis.edu/HCE/EthicsAtAGlance/index.html. Pence, G. E. (2011) Medical ethics: accounts of ground-breaking cases. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.