So then, what does it mean to be ethical in your decision-making? Shanks tell us "because we have the ability to be critical of our interpersonal behavior . . . . . we have the ability to develop codes and norms to guide that behavior. Those moral norms and codes, plus a set of virtuous character traits, are what we mean when we talk about ethics." He also tells us that while we all endeavor to make ethical decisions we run into "stumbling blocks" inhibiting our ethical decision-making. He lists the following:.
-"My small effort won't really make a difference.
-People may think badly of me.
-It's hard to know the right thing to do.
-My pride gets in the way.
-It may hurt my career.
-It just went by too quickly.
-There's a cost to doing the right thing".
We've all had to face these "stumbling blocks". This is why ethical decision-making is so personal and varied.
In our case study of Faith Community Hospital we came across many issues needing resolution. The majority if not all of them required ethical decision-making. Faith Community had a diverse group of employees, and each of them had their own set of ethical/moral standards. While administration can appreciate those differences, the responsibility to bring unity to the organization falls to them. Putting my self in the role of administrator, how do I accomplish this task? Again, I turn to the Santa Clara University website, to the article "A Framework for Ethical Decision Making". This article gives five steps that I will use, they are:.
1.Recognize a moral issue.
2.Get the facts.
3.Evaluate the alternative actions from various moral perspectives.
4.Make a decision.
5.Act, the reflect on the decision later.
First, recognize a moral issue. At Faith Community there are several issues. They are:.
-Staff on both ends of the spectrum of Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders. I have staff that resuscitate when a DNR is in place as well as staff that do not resuscitate when a DNR is not in place.