Virtue Ethics Essay

 Virtue Ethics Essay



#1 Wrong Operation Doctor
Ethics and Integrity
	Integrity is one of the basic values that employers look for in the employees they hire. It is the hallmark of a person who demonstrates moral and ethical principles at work. Integrity is the foundation upon which co-workers build relationships, trust and effective interpersonal relationships. Honesty and trust are fundamental to integrity. Acting with honor and truthfulness are also basic principles in a person with integrity. In general, a person of integrity is someone who can be trusted.
            The aspect of integrity entails being in the position to be honest and always adhering to principles of professionalism. Integrity means also to do things in accordance with the morals of society. In this particular case, the integrity of both the hospital and the physician was destroyed.  The hospital did not inform the family of the 15-year-old boy who was subjected to a wrong form of brain surgery for close to one year (Boodman, 2011). Definitely, neither the doctor nor the hospital act in a right and good faith towards the patient, his relatives, and colleagues. It is clear that there was a protocols failure in the preoperative verification process and the hospital might have kept it quiet as a way of avoiding further consequences, but it still remains an integrity issue.
	One would suggest that criminal charges be considered in this case. Especially, because the incident resulted in permanent damage for the patient and that information was not disclosed to his parents for more than a year ago. One can envisage that everything was premeditated in order to prevent repercussions against the hospital. This can also work if there is proper and accurate reporting of the case (“Judgment Upheld in Arkansas Brain Surgery Lawsuit” 2012). This is further because of the breach of integrity, among other important elements that healthcare providers need to integrate. Similarly, based on the effects of the ethical activity in the talk, the case needs to be directed to criminal charges (NQF, n. d.). 
	I chose to respond to this case firstly because of the way it portrays its lack of integrity, secondly, because of the importance integrity has within the health care setting, and thirdly, because wrong site surgery causing serious harm to patients seem to be far more common in hospitals and clinics in the USA. It is evident how the activities of the hospital affected the boy’s later life, as he had complications with his brain (Dworkowitz, 2018). The fact that the hospital fails to follow the procedures and inform the family of the boy raises integrity issues. Similarly, the case presents some of its facts to explain some of the reasons behind such cases. 
	In my clinical setting, integrity is displayed in several ways. For example, everyone is expected to be honest with what they do, everybody shows respect and empathy with each other.
Being morally accountable and responsible for one's judgment and actions is also essential.
 In addition, they are expected to abide by the set nursing standards, as well as societal morals and ethics (Oermann et al., 2018). This means that those working in the setting have to incorporate proper ethics and rational thinking in what they do. 








References
Boodman, S. G., (2011). Kaiser Health News, The Washington Post. Pozgar, 4th ed., p. 43 (integrity)
Dworkowitz, V. (2018). Integrity defined in nursing practice. Heart, 1.
Judgment Upheld in Arkansas Brain Surgery Lawsuit. (2012, December 17). Retrieved from http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southcentral/2012/12/17/274239.htm
NQF: Home. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.qualityforum.org/Home.aspx%20 
Oermann, M. H., Nicoll, L. H., Chinn, P. L., Ashton, K. S., Conklin, J. L., Edie, A. H., ... & Williams, B. L. (2018). Quality of articles published in predatory nursing journals. Nursing Outlook, 66(1), 4-10. 	
Tyson, K. (2012). Wrong site surgery- where are we and what is the next step? 7(2): 229-232 doi: 10.1007/s11552-012-9405-5