4.5 Ethics in the Healthcare Workplace
Christine Malone, EdD
There are four key ethical principles that guide healthcare professionals in their interactions with patients and coworkers, ensuring the protection of both:
- Autonomy: Patients must be allowed to make their own decisions about their care, provided they have been given the information to make informed choices.
- Beneficence: Healthcare professionals are expected to treat everyone, including patients and coworkers, with kindness and compassion.
- Non-maleficence: Individuals should not cause harm to others.
- Justice: Individuals must be treated fairly.
Employees should also adhere to ethical principles in their workplace roles. This includes being loyal to the employer, maintaining honesty at all times, and practicing a strong work ethic. Ethical principles can guide employees in decision-making by encouraging them to consider the impact of their decisions, determine whether they might harm others or violate the law, and choose actions they feel are morally sound.
One important aspect of ethical behavior is maintaining professionalism in all settings, including on social media. If a healthcare professional posts something inappropriate online, it could lead to legal consequences or damage their professional reputation.
There may also be situations where a healthcare professional’s personal beliefs conflict with a patient’s preferences. For example, a healthcare provider may not agree with certain treatments, such as blood transfusions. In these cases, the professional should transfer care to another provider who is comfortable with the patient’s treatment choices.