Personal Ethics Development

Wanda Dominic

PHL/323 Ethics in Management

May 10, 2013
Gina Messina-Dyssert

PERSONAL ETHICS DEVELOPMENT

The process of ethics development begins during childhood. Parents are a child’s first teacher. The child is taught about making the distinction between right and wrong. The lessons are taught through direct teaching by the parents at first. As the child grows, there are other people who are influential in his or her life. For example: the child begins to interact with combination of teachers, classmates, churches, and other family members. Life experiences begin to mold and shape the moral attitude and soon to be personal ethical system of this child. I am a product of moral teachings at home. Living a very sheltered life as a child, I learned most of what I know morally from my parents and teachers. My ethical system began to take shape as I became an adult who interacted in the workforce. With nursing as my career choice, I realize that it important to identify with my personal ethical system. I am consistently in a position that requires me to make decisions that involve the safety and wellbeing of human lives. Making the right decision without jeopardizing the organizations ethical standards can be very difficult at times. My personal ethical system is a combination of two systems: Duty-based and Goal-based. The duty-based ethical system commits professionals to carry out duties with the clear-cut instructions developed by the outside authority such as the organization. This ethical system is important because it establishes a foundation by which employees can govern themselves. For example: employees are aware of what is expected of them because they have been given a job description and code of conduct. As a nurse, it is my duty to carry out doctors’ orders to ensure that proper and efficient care can be delivered to the patient. Part of this include implementing the nursing process from the beginning to the end of my shift. The nursing process begins with a complete assessment of the patient. This helps to determine if there needs to be any adjustments mad to the current treatment regimen. For example: I begin my shift with an assessment of a patients’ blood pressure. I am aware of the patients’ current blood pressure medication regimen. However, during this assessment, the blood pressure reading is 190/110. Immediately, I make contact with the physician so that a determination can be made about the proper intervention. The physician listened to my assessment and gives the proper orders for treatment. The second ethical system is Goal-based. Every decision I make must be in the best interest of the patient. The ultimate goal is to ensure that the safety and wellbeing of the patient is maintained. There are times that I have to make nursing judgment calls based on my training as a nurse, even when there are instructions in place. For example: I was assigned to a unit, where the majority of the patients exhibited drug seeking behaviors. The unit also contained one or two very elderly patients. Not only was I the nurse, I also felt like a warden. In a facility like this, employees are committed to protect the privacy and dignity of all the patients. If patients wanted to have sex, we were not permitted to stop them. There was a man who liked to visit a female patient in her room at any time of night. She had a roommate who was elderly. I would not allow the visits during my shift. The decision would have been different if the female patient had a private room. There are other situations in which my ethics affect my performance, and even make me examine whether or not I believe in what I am doing. For example: I am currently a Substance abuse nurse. In this program, we use a medication named Suboxone to assist the clients with kicking opiate dependency. In order for a client to be approved to receive the medication, he