Question

Discuss the ethical dilemmas of healthcare and the affect this may have on future access, cost and value. Use peer-reviewed journal articles as well as your text to support your response; Provide references.

Answer 1

The ethical dilemmas of healthcare arise where the workers at healthcare want to do the right thing but are not clear about what the right thing is. It is very common in healthcare that the promotions from pharmaceuticals, medical equipment and device manufacturers make these health workers their targets. They do it through free meals presentations and logo items like pens, notepads and calendars. This tends to change the behaviour of the physicians too. They somewhere become liable to reciprocate to these free gifts in some way which can benefit these manufacturers. This can make the physicians and other medical workers work in the interest of these companies which can be ethically wrong. They should be strict about turning down any such giveaways or compensations that can affect their decision making and responsibilities.

Another challenge that health providers face is that the care they give should be measured in terms of cash or morals? The nurses that provide aftercare to the patients and are a resource to this industry are scarce. The decision to be made here is that if this resource should be should be invested in profit-making, which is an important motive of the healthcare organizations for sustainability, and serve a small number of patients who can afford the cost or work in areas where care can be provided to a larger number of patients keeping the money part aside. Policies should be formed for fair processes in such dilemmas.

A common practice seen in the healthcare industry is the special treatment being given to VIP patients like those from the financial donors, trustees or influential people in the community. These patients may get longer physician consultation, shorter waiting time and priority of treatment and care on the normal ordinary class. This practise should be monitored and policies should be implemented to not let such practices effect the ethical values of the health providers.

Managing and helping on decisions for pediatric and geriatric patients is also an issue of an ethical dilemma for the health workers. These are groups who cannot think for themselves and take decisions upon being treated for certain problems or not. The health providers are ethically responsible to provide them and their legally authorized representative with sufficient knowledge about the benefits and burdens of the treatment and make them decide what will be in the best interests of the patients.