Morals vs. Ethics in Healthcare

Morals and ethics are two very similar concepts. However, in the context of medicine, people often confuse the two. This is understandable given how similar they are! So, let’s break down morals and ethics in medicine and the difference between the two.

What are morals and ethics and what is the difference between them?

Once again, the concept of morals and ethics are quite similar. Morals are a person’s standards of behavior concerning what is good and what is bad. A person with good morals would often help people, stand up to unjust problems, and fight for the right things, just to name a few. Do you have to do all of these to have good morals? Of course not! Just being a good person is enough to have good morals.

In contrast, ethics are the moral principles that control someone’s behavior. So the ethics of something could lead people to do morally good things. Because of this, it is possible for someone to have good ethics and bad morals and vice versa. It is best to have both good morals and ethics, especially in medicine.

Why are morals and ethics important in medicine?

Morals and ethics are crucial in the medical field. They are important to resolve difficult medical dilemmas and make good judgements. However, keep in mind that the most ethical decision is not always the most moral decision. Normally, when it comes to treating patients, those who are in the most severe condition get greater priority, no matter who they are. Here is an example showing a medical dilemma:

Mickey Mantle is a famous American baseball player. After he stopped playing baseball, however, Mantle’s quality of life went downhill, leading him to devolve into alcoholism. Eventually, his liver stopped functioning completely and he needed a liver transplant. Due to Mantle’s fame, however, he was the top priority to receive a liver. Keep in mind though, there were several people on the waiting list to undergo a liver transplant as well. The reason why Mantle was placed in higher priority was not only because he was famous, but the hope was so he could turn his life around and promote organ donations.

So, was this situation ethical? Well, that is up for you to decide! But this is an example of ethics in medicine that are not necessarily the most morally right.

The importance of ethics in medicine

Sometimes, making the morally correct decision in medicine is not the ethically right decision, and that is okay. That is just one of the aspects of being a healthcare worker, it is more important to follow ethics rather than morals. This is a difficult concept to think about, however, following these ethics can help save more lives. By putting the patients in worse conditions in priority, they are more likely to get better. In contrast, the patients in better conditions can hold off a bit longer as they can get treated more easily. However, keep in mind that decisions like these are not easy, they are extremely difficult to judge and make.

To end off this blog, we shall leave you with an imaginary medical dilemma for you to think about:

Two patients have been admitted into FMPW hospital.

The first patient is an 18-year-old woman who cut herself while cooking. The cut on her left index finger appears to be to the bone and is bleeding profusely.

The second patient is a 63-year-old male with chest pains, shortness of breath, and numbness in his left arm.

Who should you treat first and why?

Think about it and let us know!

Work Cited:

https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/ethics-consult/91827