Running Head: ETHICS OF THE MEDICAL FIELD

ETHICS OF THE MEDICAL FIELD

An Overview of the Basic Guidelines
Shamesha E. Dyson
IVY Tech Comm. College

Author Note
Shamesha E. Dyson, attending the IVYT course at Ivy Tech community college. The
works I am submitting is supported by the criteria of this course. Correspondence
concerning any given information may be addressed at the email SDyson5@ivytech.edu

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Abstract
This research paper ranges over the strict guidelines to the ethical appeals of the medical field of
work. Furthermore, Ethical Codes and the consequences if such codes arent followed. Such
guidelines should be followed as they are documented by the American Medical Association.
Those guidelines include include the Declaration of Professional Responsibility, and most
importantly Professional codes of ethics, and guiding principles for the foundation of patient
care. The forthcoming introduction, will explore the meaning of Medical Ethics or Codes of
Ethics to enlighten my audience of the foundation for delivering optimal health to patients in
the care of nurses, doctors, dentist, surgeons and even care givers. Alongside of ethical codes will
be the results of not following these codes. Not following these could result in assault, battery,
and malpractice, which goes into more detail in the body of the paper.
Keywords: Ethics, Codes, Assault, Battery, Malpractice

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ETHICS of THE MEDICAL FIELD: An Overview of the Basic Guidelines

Going into the health field it is important that all aspiring care givers know the basics of ethical
and legal responsibilities. There are numerous guidelines and regulations when it comes to the
health field, but unfortunately these principles are often neglected. So, hopefully with the
research I provide now and future nurses, doctors, surgeons, and dentists will take these
principles into action; assuring that their patients are well taken care of and will see their care
provider with great reputation.
First and foremost it would be beneficial to know what ethics are. Ethics are a system of
principles (fundamental truths) a society develops to guide decision making about what is right
and wrong (Kong- Lung 4.) Ethics can be hard to follow because everyones beliefs are
different; varying from culture to culture. If an ethical principles is provided against someones
culture, religion, and lifestyle it may cause an ethical dilemma.
Ethical dilemmas can occur in three different conditions according to Karen Allen, Ph.D.;
the conditions are as followed. The first condition occurs in a situation when an individual
called an agent must make a decision about which course of action is best. Situations that are
uncomfortable but that dont require a choice, are not ethical dilemmas. For example, students in
their internships are required to be under the supervision of an appropriately credentialed social
work field instructor. Therefore, because there is no choice in the matter, there is no ethical
violation or breach of confidentiality when a student discusses a case with the supervisor. The
second condition for ethical dilemma is that there must be different courses of action to choose
from. Third, in an ethical dilemma, no matter what course of action is taken, some ethical

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principle is compromised. In other words, there is no perfect solution (Sweich par. 3). As you
can see ethics are a must to follow, yet hard to follow in certain situations.
Now, what is the Declaration of Professional ResponsibilityMedicines Social
Contract with Humanity is a public reaffirmation of physicians dedication to the ideals and
obligations of the profession. These ideals and obligations transcend physician roles and
specialties, professional associations, geographic boundaries and political differences, uniting all
physicians in a community of service to humankind (AMA par. 1). Healthcare workers should
also be respectful at all times acknowledging that their patient well-being is not only important,
but also their self-esteem.
Furthermore, along with ethics comes many other principles such as codes. Codes are to
promote professionalism and are a good set of rules to follow in order to conduct anyone of the
medical field with mannerism, integrity, and honesty. While, researching codes of ethics I found
a detail by detail guide of the codes of ethic provided by the CFA.
Now, I would like to inform you that the CFA is a financial institution, however the codes
of ethics provided by this site are universal codes; meaning they are applied in all career field.
Also, their resource is rich in information; giving me more knowledge of these codes than a
Wikipedia site would. This institute provides valuable information of professionals and provides
many valuable points; setting out the standards of professional conduct. Professionalism is a
must in the medical field in any other field for that matter. One whom want to deliver the best of
health to their patients must first know how to conduct themselves in a medical setting.
According, to the CFA to serve professionalism one must have knowledge of the law,
have independence and objectivity, and to not serve misconduct. It is pretty evident that one has

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to know the laws of their profession rather it be doctoring, nursing, or even dentistry, these
principles are the guidelines for the treatment of a patient.
So, what is medical law exactly? Medical law -- is the body of laws concerning the
rights and responsibilities of medical professionals and their patients. The main areas of focus for
medical law include confidentiality, negligence and other torts related to medical treatment
(especially medical malpractice), and criminal law and ethics" (HG par. 1).
Independent and objectivity refers to being unbiased and fair to all patients regardless of
circumstances. Being a health care professional could be deviating when acting on ones health,
but these principles must be justified, while also considering that the patients wishes are always
first and most important even if they aren't the "smartest" decisions.
It should always be evident that one working in this field MUST not practice in type of
misinterpretation, intentionally. Medical jargon can be taken offensive to nearby patients who
aren't used to the terms used. Hill, a nurse practitioner have been in a situation where a patient
took offense to harmless medical jargon. The situation is as followed; one nurse asked another
where the "COW" was. A close patient overheard this and got offended. But, it was later
explained to the patient that a COW "is a computer on wheels -- the mobile cart with a laptop
computer used by nurses and respiratory therapists to make entries on patient medical
records"(Sweich par. 1). All healthcare professionals should be aware that medical jargon isnt
always the best type of communication when around patients. If a patient was to misinterpret the
medical jargon it would be a considering choice to reassure them on the content meaning, as Hill
Lastly, but most importantly one must not serve misconduct. Such behaviors of
negligence, battery, malpractice, and assault could not only be damaging to the career of the
professional, but also to the patients life. Unfortunately these type of misconducts happens daily

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and the results are always detrimental. The license of the professional will be terminated and in
more severe cases jail time could be issued depending on the nature of the case.

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Refrences
Allen, Karen. "What Is an Ethical Dilemma?" SocialWorker. N.P., 22 Dec. 2013. Web. 28 Nov.
2016.
AMA. "Frequently Asked Questions on Ethics." American Medical Association. N.p. Web. 28
Nov. 2016.
Codes of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct." Cfapubs. CFA Institute, 2014. Web. 28
Nov. 2016.
HR. "Medical Law." Legal Resources, 7 Feb. 2016. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.
Kong-Lung, Hau, and Forensic Pathology Service, Department Of Health. "Medical Section."
LAW AND ETHICS IN MEDICAL PRACTICE: AN OVERVIEW 8.6 (n.d.): n. pag.
Web. 28 Nov. 2016.
Swiech Paul. "Medical Jargon Can Be Confusing, Misinterpreted." Pantagraph. N.P., 25 May
2010. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.