HCM 205 Medical Ethics – Assignment Solution
Medical Ethics Example Essay Plan—516 words Topic: When new mom Jessica Porten thought she might have postpartum depression, she went to her clinic and asked for help. She admitted that she had “violent thoughts†although she had never hurt her baby. The health care provider called police and Porten was forced to go to the ER and be evaluated there. For more on this story see this: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/02/07/582394435/nurse-calls-cops-after-woman-seeks-help-for-postpartum-depression-right-call What do you think? Was this action justified? Why or why not? For this topic I am looking for you to think about ethical concepts/ideas/principles/theories that will help you argue that this action is/is not justified. Essay Plan: Medical Ethics Thesis: Mothers with post partum depression should not be hospitalized involuntarily. Argument 1: Kantianism.Medical Ethics · The Categorical Imperative is used to determine if an action is right. There are two versions of the CI. The first asks us if everyone can do the thing I want to do? (Kant notes). · Kant gives the example of lying to healthy patients and telling them they are ill and need treatment to increase profits. He says this may seem beneficial to the doctor initially, but if all doctors did this, patients would soon not trust their doctors and stop seeking medical treatment (911). · This relates to the case because if all women were involuntarily hospitalized for post partum depression with any violent thoughts, taken away from their children and made to sit in emergency rooms for hours (sometimes it can be as much as 72 hours), no one would seek help for their depression. · The second version asks if we are treating someone as a tool to get what we want (Kant notes). Here, if we involuntarily hospitalize women, we are treating them as tools. Although the intention may be to protect their newborns, we are disregarding the rational decision making of the mother. Argument 2: Care Ethics. Medical Ethics · Takes the stand that when dealing with ethical dilemmas, broad principles are too vague and impersonal to determine what to do. The use of empathy and grasping the details of a persons circumstances is key in resolving ethical conflict (954). · Care Ethics has great importance in the medical world because there are many situations where a black or white, blanket answer to a conflict can leave a lot of people with sub par care. Care ethics does not draw on universal principles. · Care Ethics relates to the article with Jessica Porten by pointing out the short comings of the nurse she was talking to about her post partum depression symptoms. Instead of listening to Jessica’s full, the nurse called the police, had Jessica hauled away to an ER for ten hours and potentially added additional stressors of hospitalization costs and how she was going to continue to care for her child. Objection 1—Harm and Paternalism Principles Medical Ethics · The Harm Principle is a restriction of autonomy and used to restrict ones freedoms to keep them from doing harm to others (945). Some might feel that Jessica Porten’s providers acted justly in sending Jessica to the hospital against her will because she was perceived as a risk to the health and well being of her baby. Another risk is that Jessica feels so guilty for the symptoms she is experiencing that she commits suicide. · The Principle of Paternalism. This is basically the Harm Principle, but directed towards the person’s self harm, rather then others (945). Medical Ethics Response: Nonmaleficence · The major moral principle of Nomaleficence says that “we ought to act in ways that do not cause needless harm or injury to othersâ€(933). This includes neglect and failure to provide due care. Jessica’s nurse not taking a full history of her thought’s and symptoms caused her needless stress which may have caused further emotional harm. Get Assignment Help Now