Reply to the following Convictions and moral beliefs may be in some circumstances, why doctors, nurses, etc. choose to b

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Reply to the following
Convictions and moral beliefs may be in some circumstances, why
doctors, nurses, etc. choose to become health care providers to
begin with. Personal experience and our values shape whom we
become, what we choose to do in our lives, whom we choose to marry
and so on. I therefore believe that it is an important part of a
health care providers moral identity. Our conscience ties us
together with others, while we are all unique in the way our
consciences are informed, we can also say that’s what makes us
similar. In reading over the characteristics of a person whom has
an informed conscience, many appeared to fall in line with what I
believe health care providers would have. The ability to educate
and develop their conscience through use and application, someone
who seeks out wisdom, but also someone who can still make a wrong
decision and reflect. Then there is the factor of autonomy, the
right to self- govern and act according to our morality. In these
circumstances health care professionals seek what per say a patient
might, the right to choose for themselves. The AMA touches on
preserving the integrity of the medical profession as well as the
integrity of the physician, on which the patients and public rely.
Do we not hold health care providers at times to higher moral
standards then others? I believe this means something. The AMA also
states that due to this, physicians should have the right to
practice in accordance with their strongly held beliefs that are
central to their self-identities. Meaning their values, beliefs and
consciences makes them whom they are as individuals, the
individuals entrusted to provide us with care.
There are multiple parts to the definition of moral integrity. When
reading the moral agency power point slides the first part I would
like to reference is when it states, “refers to the ideal
situation.” When an individual feels stressed at their workplace or
feels the workplace is unstable this can lead to burn out or as Dr.
Lamb put it in her presentation “issues of conscience can arise,
leading to conscientious objections.” The second part states they
are able to freely act upon their personal moral values. Health
care professionals have the free will to make choices without peer
pressure or institutional constraints. If they were not able to
practice this it would lead to more often moral dilemmas, either
within ones’ self or between agents. The last part of the
definition I would like to point out is that the moral agent
accepts responsibility for their actions. Part of having free will
is to also know when to refrain from acting or making particular
decisions. When utilizing moral freedoms, one must also exercise
moral responsibility and be accountable.
Being forced to choose to engage in an act that felt immoral would
deter health care providers from practicing their moral integrity.
Working on two mental health inpatient units for a number of years
I had experienced a few instances where I had a struggle of
conscience. Not to the extremes of the more common examples given
in the readings and videos we have been provided with, but I had
felt a certain way when asked to provide services to certain
individuals on the units. Individuals whom could be violent or act
sexually inappropriate etc. I in some ways felt pressured by staff
to engage in the tasks, but a part of me knew that by choosing to
work with mentally ill patients I was exposing myself to their
illness and all that their illnesses could at times encompass. In
that instance I believe if providers feel very strongly about those
certain topics, then they should not choose to work in places where
they would have to preform those duties. On the other hand, I felt
like my voice was not being heard or that my opinion on the matter
was not being valued. That the patients care had trumped my
individual comfort. This at times made my work environment awkward
and diminished my trust in certain superiors. Living it first hand
I could see how in these situations the workplace could become
stressful, unstable or even toxic.
There Is also in these situations a lot of pressure. Pressure to
act in a just manner. Pressure to abide by what you believe your
conscience is telling you and then pressure from your workplace to
act in a professional manner and uphold professional integrity.
Overall, I believe that exercising moral integrity in a dilemma can
be challenging but a right that is ours to uphold as members of
society. I would like to close my post with a quote used in Dr.
Lambs presentation on conscientious objection. She gave a quote
from a nurses’ lived experience and this woman stated, “It’s really
high stakes to act on your conscience, well, inform your conscience
to know what’s right to do and what’s wrong to do, and then to have
the courage to go ahead and act in that way.