20 Jun 2022

396

Moral Principles of Ethical Decision Making

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Academic level: College

Paper type: Research Paper

Words: 827

Pages: 2

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Counselors are regularly faced with situations that need strong ethical judgment. When faced with serious ethical dilemmas, deciding the right course of action can be challenging. The next parts will go through generally applicable guiding principles in ethical decision-making, professionals may employ to deal with ethical challenges at work. The code of ethics will not be able to address every issue that directors may face. Examining the ethical principles that the standards are based on may often help to clarify the issues that arise in a certain situation. Autonomy, fidelity, justice, nonmaleficence and beneficence are all absolute facts. By understanding the problems connected with these principles, people may better comprehend conflicting circumstances. 

Nonmaleficence 

Nonmaleficence is the concept of not causing damage to others. Even though they are all theoretically equal in weight, some consider this concept, which is typically stated as "above all, do no harm," to be the most essential of all the principles. This notion covers both the concept of not intentionally harming others and the concept of avoiding behaviors that may hurt others ( Juujärvi, Kallunki & Luostari, 2020) . The non-malicious (no damage) principle states that a health professional's action should not inflict harm, even if it is demanded by him or his patients or clients. This concept was initially presented because of its historical origins; it is connected to Hippocrates' renowned "primum nil nocere" - in the first place, it does not impair medical ethics, albeit it is not identical. In terms of public health policy, in actuality, the degree of harm is frequently "balanced" by the risk of future suffering or possibly positive benefits: for example, prohibiting smoking in public places may hurt individual smokers but will prevent further harm. Smoking is widely discouraged among the general community, although it is harmful (and maybe beneficial). When the idea of non-malice is considered, the burden of proof is moved to those who engage in potentially harmful behavior and have good reason to do so. Actions that are advantageous, the responsibility to assist specific patients or clients is intimately tied to good behavior. Its apparent relevance indicates that it is a fundamental concept of the Hippocratic tradition: physicians should heal and assist their patients according to their competence and judgment. 

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Beneficence 

Nonmaleficence is intimately related to the obligation to produce benefits for specific patients or clients, as we've already discussed. Its seeming self-evident relevance sets it apart from the Hippocratic tradition's second core principle: physicians should heal and assist their patients according to their abilities and judgment. The difference between non-maleficence and beneficence is that the former typically but not always include the avoidance of harmful action, whereas the latter entails active contribution to others' well-being. A good example is when a drowning victim is resuscitated. A wounded patient in the emergency room is given pain medicine as quickly as feasible. To prevent a patient from falling out of their hospital bed, the side rails are lifted. 

Autonomy 

The autonomy principle is concerned with the idea of independence. The basic idea behind this notion is to provide people the freedom to choose and act on their own. It discusses the counselor's obligation to assist clients in making their judgments and, when required, acting on their convictions. When encouraging customers to be self-sufficient, there are two important factors to consider. To begin, help the client realize how their actions and beliefs may or may not be accepted in the context of the culture in which they live, as well as how they may infringe on others' rights. The client's capacity to make informed judgments is the second factor to examine ( Niforatos et al., 2020) . Children and some individuals with mental impairments who are unable to make competent decisions should not be allowed to make decisions that may harm themselves or others. For example, when dealing with underage smokers, they should be rehabilitated and taught the side effects of engaging in such behaviors. 

Justice 

Everyone is not treated equally in the name of justice. Justice is defined as "treating equals equally and unequal unequally but according to their major differences," according to prior studies. If a client is to be treated differently, the counselor must be able to explain why this treatment is both necessary and appropriate. Still, on the issue of smoking, adults who engage in such activities should be allowed to smoke as long as they do not endanger anyone's health. Smoking areas should be set aside for anyone who wishes to smoke in the workplace. 

Fidelity 

The notions of faithfulness, loyalty and fulfilling commitments are all included in the term fidelity. Clients must be able to trust the counselor and believe in the therapeutic relationship if they are to progress. As a result, the counselor must be cautious not to jeopardize the therapeutic relationship or fail to fulfill obligations ( Simm, 2020) . A good example is when a patient wants that his fatal diagnosis not to be revealed to his family, as an example of loyalty. 

In conclusion, it is critical to recognize that various professionals may use different approaches in the same circumstance. A complicated ethical problem is seldom answered perfectly. You may be confident that you can provide a competent justification for your chosen course of action if you utilize a methodical approach. Proper implementation of these principles may help in resolving different complicated situations in different circumstances. 

References 

Juujärvi, S., Kallunki, E., & Luostari, H. (2020). Ethical decision-making of social welfare workers in the transition of services: The ethics of care and justice perspectives.  Ethics and social welfare 14 (1), 65-83. 

Niforatos, E., Palma, A., Gluszny, R., Vourvopoulos, A., & Liarokapis, F. (2020, April). Would you do it?: enacting moral dilemmas in virtual reality for understanding ethical decision-making. In  Proceedings of the 2020 CHI conference on human factors in computing systems  (pp. 1-12). 

Simm, K. (2020). Ethical decision-making in humanitarian medicine: how best to prepare?.  disaster medicine and public health preparedness , 1-5. 

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