All persons have immutable rights to life and liberty, and these rights are to be respected, nurtured, and facilitated. In the health care milieu, modern thought on beneficence embraces humanism. Most ethical theory has embraced various aspects of beneficence, and utilitarian theorists see beneficence as the foundation for causing the greatest benefit for all. There is much written over the centuries by philosophers on this ethic because of its great power and potential for distributive justice and the greater good. An example of this is what has become known as a random act of kindness. Beneficent acts can be performed from a position of obligation in what is owed and from a supererogatory perspective, meaning more than what is owed. It connotes doing good to others and invokes a wide array of moral obligation. The generic definition of beneficence is an act of charity, mercy, and kindness. An understanding of this ethic of care compels the individual health practitioner to consider his or her calling to the high standards of professionalism as a moral imperative one that advocates for high standards and powerfully strives for the greater good.
Beneficence professional#
This is in sharp contrast with the principles of professionalism.Īn integral part of work as a professional is the foundational ethic of beneficence. Rather than society itself providing a conventional framework for the expectation of professional behaviors, with these predicated on the fiduciary relationship between practitioner and patient, many influences have placed the pursuit of affluence, entitlement, and personal excess as the ultimate calling and reward, with this being synonymous with and the best measure of success. The influence of moral relativism has greatly affected the current generation of young practitioners. Western society places enormous conflicts on individual practitioners. Both of these domains are constrained by a moral imperative of behavior and a duty of accountability to all parties. This standard is higher than that of general members of the public and affects both the clinical setting and the practitioner's life when not involved in clinical work.
One high standard is with behavior and in conduct that professionals are held accountable to. Whereas the law cannot establish precise optimal performance, professionalism demands that health care practitioners strive for and maintain excellence in their care and hold to higher standards than those of the general public.
Though practicing in an ethical manner is not optional, the law, through legislation and regulations, sets out what the minimum standards of conduct are. That is why every jurisdiction has legislation and regulations: to protect members of the public, the vulnerable party. The client is in the weak and vulnerable position entirely due to the client's real or perceived unmet needs, with these needs not being able to be ameliorated by the client on his or her own. The responsibility for maintaining these high professional standards rests exclusively with the party holding the position of trust, power, and authority. This embodies the concept of the fiduciary relationship work performed that always and without exception favors the client and not the professional performing the work. All health care practitioners are constrained by the principles of professionalism in honoring and upholding the interests and well-being of their patients.
0 kommentar(er)
