Ethics matters in health

Policy makers and public health professionals may be forced to weigh and prioritize potentially competing ethical values in the face of severe time and resource constraints. This video from the World Health Organisation explains that ethical concerns associated with the planning, preparedness and response to disease outbreaks are important to consider, ensuring that response efforts are not hindered in the event of a pandemic.

[pkemulj]

As much as I appreciate the World Health Organization for making this informative video on why ethics matters in health, I believe that WHO oversimplified the concept of ethics in this video. WHO should’ve spent some time explaining in this video how ethical principles help guide healthcare providers’ decisions, especially during times of crisis (i.e. infectious disease outbreaks). For those of you who are unaware, there are four ethical principles: respect for autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice. Respect for autonomy is supporting and respecting autonomous decisions for individuals who have decision-making capacity. Beneficence is preventing harm, removing harm, and promoting good. Non-maleficence is do no harm or evil. Justice is the concept that equals should be treated equally and unequals should be treated unequally. All four of these ethical concepts need to be taken into consideration when making choices in healthcare. I believe that if WHO spent some time in this video explaining these principles, it would shed more light on how healthcare providers are guided by ethics to make difficult choices.

[GinaSansone-vfum]

Sexual morality and substance abuse issues😂