Ethical Dilemma
In the presented case the ethical dilemmas are that the moral imperatives and values are involved in a conflict. The ethical dilemma in this case study is that despite the fact that the child has been diagnosed with an existence threatening ailment which is meningitis it is only one of the parent that holds the primary custody of the child. Mainly, in this case, three individuals are fully involved, in the ethical dilemma the child and the mother and the major parties. However, the child is a minor who cannot make decisions on his own. On the other hand, the religious beliefs of the mother oppose medical treatment for the child who requires urgent help.
The case’s ethical dilemma happens because of the doctor’s duties contradictions. Based on the conduct code the doctor is required to provide treated to the entire patient. The code holds that the role of the doctor is to provide medical care to individuals in order to save their lives. In this case, the doctor has the role of giving the child the care he deserves (Emmerich, 2013). However according to the professional ethics code, the doctor is required to seek permission before treating a patient. The doctor attempted to seek for treating permission from the patient’s mother but she denies him permission based on religious reasons and the fact that the biological father to the child is not present. The doctor cannot, therefore, provide the main responsibility of providing treatment to the child without the necessary consent to do so.
Ethical dilemmas are often in the clinical settings as this involves conflicting beliefs, norms as well as beliefs in regard to medical treatment (Rosenorn-Lanng, 2015). Ethical theories are therefore developed in order to solve ethical dilemmas in clinical settings. I choose to work with the decided model. In the thus model the health issue is clearly defined, a way for a particular measure of health care is developed and all the options under the issue are taken into account. Moreover, the model provides the most suitable options to solve the health issue effectively. This is aimed at providing a well-developed solution to the ethical dilemma. Under the presented situation, the model provides proper execution activity plan to handle the situation. The second option of this model is grounded on conducting an evaluation as well as monitoring the health issue and the suitable solution under the options that have been developed.
Decide model can be used in this situation because the child in the case has severe vomiting and convulsions symptoms. The doctor has thus established that the child is suffering from meningitis ailment which requires health care attention immediately. However, the situation only holds to solutions as the only options. This includes to either providing the child with the necessary medical treatment of to ignore the ailment and permit him to suffer for lack of options. The other way is to provide relief to the child by providing treatment to prevent him from suffering because medical treatment is the only solution that can end his suffering. This is so because the child is entitled to medical treatment despite the fact that he cannot make personalized decisions. Medical treatment can, therefore, be providing to the child as the father’s appearance waits. Decide model implementation can help in resolving the moral dilemma of this circumstance because this involves saving an individual’s life (Gallagher, & Hodge, 2012). The doctor should try and make the parents understand that the conflict which is developed by the religious beliefs and principles that they both hold would damage their Childs future. It is the duty of the doctor to ensure that favorable decisions are made in regard to the patient’s health. This can thus involve evaluating the options and develop the best suitable decisions by utilization of the Decide model. Making decisions is an essential element of healthcare as it mainly involves individuals’ wellbeing. Therefore the use of Decide model would be helpful in ensuring that the most suitable solutions to the dilemma are developed (Gallagher, & Hodge, 2012).
In my opinion, it is essential for the child’s mother to critical understand that the child is in a critical condition and that he requires immediate healthcare. This would help in making proper decisions that would help in solving the issue. The main duty of a doctor is ensuring that the patients are not subjected to suffering because the doctor is fully in control (Emmerich, 2013). This, therefore, means that permitting the doctor to offer treatment to the child despite the religious beliefs of the mother is the best decision. This is because the child’s ailment requires immediate care and it not treated on time this would make the condition worse. Lack of tenement will permit growth for the disease which will thus ensure that treatment in later period would be unreflective thus subjecting the child to more suffering and later death. The mother is required to understand that the life of the child is at threat and since the child does not understand the religious beliefs he should be given proper treatment.
References
Emmerich, N. (2013). Medical ethics education: An interdisciplinary and social theoretical perspective.
Gallagher, A., & Hodge, S. (2012). Ethics, law and professional issues: A practice-based approach for health professionals. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Rosenorn-Lanng, D. (2015). Human factors in healthcare: Level two.
