virginia chapter aer conference march 3, 2011 daniel j. day, licsw washington, dc va medical center
TRANSCRIPT
Ethics Empowerment for Helping Professionals
Virginia Chapter AER Conference March 3, 2011Daniel J. Day, LICSW
Washington, DC VA Medical Center
Empower persons providing educational and rehabilitation services to the blind and visually impaired to identify, analyze and address ethical issues more confidently
Ethics Empowerment
Explore fundamental theoretical approaches to contemporary professional ethics including: duty based (deontology), consequence based (utilitarian), and character based (virtue) ethical frameworks.
Ethics Empowerment
Become more aware of professional and organizational ethical cultures and guidelines articulated in Codes of Ethics, Missions Statements, etc.
Utilize the three main ethical frameworks as well as pertinent ethical guidelines to identify, analyze and address challenging ethical issues and dilemmas in our work
Ethics Empowerment
What do we mean by the term “Ethics?”
Ethics Defined
Thoughts concerning good, right and praiseworthy actions/deeds/behaviors and their opposites bad, wrong, and blameworthy
Criteria, standards…Evaluating values!
Ethics
Duty based ethics considers the actions of helping professional
Consequence based ethic considers the effects resulting from the actions of professional helpers
Virtue based ethics considers the character, (intentions and motivations) of helping professionals
Ethics in the Helping Professions
Respect for the person and his/her autonomy
Minimizing harmsMaximizing goodJustice and Fairness (Tom Beauchamp and James Childress)
Principlism: A Contemporary Model for the Helping Professions
It’s not just in the thinking, it’s in the doing!
Ethics
Common Ethical Dilemmas in our Work
Let’s Do Ethics
Designed to promote ethics quality through the organization on all levels.
Individual action Systems and Process and Organizational Culture VHA aims to promote technical, customer
service and ethics quality
IntegratedEthics: VHA Model
Ethics ConsultationPreventive EthicsEthics Leadership
IntegratedEthics: VHA Model
Clarify the consultation requestAssemble the relevant information
Synthesize the informationExplain the synthesisSupport the consultation process
IE Consultation: CASES
Identify an issueStudy the issueSelect a strategyUndertake a planEvaluate and adjustSustain and spread
IE Preventive Ethics: ISSUES
1. Demonstrate that ethics is a priority
2. Communicate clear expectations for ethical practice
3. Practice ethical decision making
4. Support your local ethics program
IE Leadership Ethics: Four Points of the Ethics Compass
1) The domain of IntegratedEthics concerns how well the facility implements IntegratedEthics structures and processes.
2) Ethical Practices in Government Service concerns how well the facility fosters behavior appropriate for government employees (serving the public good in federal agencies).
3) Ethical Practices in the Everyday Workplace concerns how well the facility supports ethical behavior in everyday interactions in the workplace.
IE Domains of Ethics in Health Care
4) Patient Privacy and Confidentiality concerns how well the facility protects patient privacy and confidentiality.
5) Professionalism in Patient Care concerns how well the facility fosters behavior appropriate for health care professionals.
6) Shared Decision Making with Patients concerns how well the facility promotes collaborative decision making between clinicians and patients.
7) Ethical Practices in End-of-Life Care concerns how well the facility addresses ethical aspects of caring for patients near the end of life.
IE Domains of Ethics in Health Care
8) Ethical Practices in Research concerns how well the facility ensures that its employees follow ethical standards that apply to research practices.
9) Ethical Practices in Business and Management focuses on how well the facility promotes high ethical standards in its business and management practices.
10) Ethical Practices in Resource Allocation focuses on how well the facility demonstrates fairness in allocating resources across programs, services, and patients. This domain is receiving ever increasing attention in healthcare ethics.
IE Domains of Ethics in Health Care
Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation & Education Professionals: www.acvrep.org
American Academy of Ophthalmology: www.aa.org
Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired: www.aerbvi.org
Center for the Study of Ethics in the Professions at Illinois Institute of Technology www.ethics.iit.edu.
Chris MacDonald, Ph.D. Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, NS (Guidance for Writing a Code of Ethics) www.ethicsweb.ca/codes.
Ethics Resource Center: www.ethics.org
Ethics Resources
National Center for Ethics In Health Care, US Department of Veterans Affairs: www.va.ethics
The Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University: www.scu.edu
US National Institutes of Health www.bioethics.od.
Western Michigan University www.wmich.edu