HA515 Unit 7 Discussion
In 200 words Choose one of the dilemmas listed under the section “Common Ethical Dilemmas in Health Organizations” from
Title: Leadership For Health Professionals
Edition: 3rd (2017)
Author: Ledlow, Coppola
Publisher: Jones & Bartlett Book
ISBN: 978-1-2841-0941-2
, and discuss its complexities. Explain why you selected this dilemma. As a healthcare leader, how do you approach issues regarding the dilemma you selected?
In two separate paragraphs give your personal opinion with no less than 75 words to Julie Skala and
Benjamin Schortgen
Julie Skala
Right to life issues is a topic that is very dear to my heart. I had the honor of being a hospice nurse for ten years and this subject arouse all the time. Many people think hospice is a form of euthanasia, as we give large doses of medications for comfort and the end of life. Ledlow and Stephens, 2018 point out that requests for euthanasia may increase as a result of hospice and palliative services, because people are becoming more accepting of their conditions and are able to plan for their deaths.
When a person is given a diagnosis of a terminal illness that will end their life because there is no cure, letting them die in comfort is different than killing them. This becomes a moral dilemma as people say that human life is sacred and should not be ended in any way regardless of medical reasons. (Iranian Journal of Public Health, 2017)
As a healthcare leader you need to approach this issue without inflicting your own opinion. You need to be able to respect the views of the patients and their families and provide education on what their choices are, support them in their decisions and teach your staff to do the same.
The leader must be able to balance their personal views with the goals of the organization, and if they strongly believe in one view point, and the organization does not, they may need to rethink what they want their role in the organization to be.(Ledlow and Stephens, 2017)
References:
Banović, B., Turanjanin, V., & Miloradović, A. (2017, February). An Ethical Review of Euthanasia and Physician-assisted Suicide. Retrieved February 11, 2020, from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5402774/
Ledlow, G. R., & Stephens, J. H. (2018). Leadership for health professionals: theory, skills, and applications. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Benjamin Schortgen
Relationship morality, or ethical dilemmas between people in authority and their staff, between peers, and between an individual and their superior create a vast gray area of ethic and moral behavior. (Ledlow 2018)
I chose this topic because of the work I need to do to strengthen my convictions in this area. Not that I would act immorally, but my personality is one that enjoys the respect and admiration of others and confrontation in this area due to real or perceived ethics violations makes my hands sweat even as I write this.
The most obvious complexity comes from the interpersonal relationships we build as leaders and the varying degree to which we hold our moral and ethical standards as individuals. This dilemma infiltrates into all other examples presented by the text in that how we view these scenarios versus how others view them begins to muddy the waters right away.
For example, I may see something being done by a peer that I deem to be a potential ethics violation. Confronting the individual participating in this perceived violation is uncomfortable, but it becomes even more convoluted when that individual does not see a violation has been committed. This possibility makes me take pause and think about how I would need to establish some proofs of the violation, document what protocol or policy is perhaps not being followed and bring the concrete evidence and concern to the person in question.
As Ledlow suggests, documentation is key when confronting a peer or leader who has possibly violated ethical or moral standards and it will serve the situation down the road to have these encounters documented, should more formal intervention be needed. (Ledlow 2018)
Reference:
Ledlow, G. R., & Stephens, J. H. (2018). Leadership for health professionals: theory, skills, and applications. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.