Personal Ethics Statement
Personal Ethics Defined
The ethics which are central to the healthcare industry, at their core, are based in the idea of providing support in a dignified and respectful manner. These fundamentals form early and support the premise that the ethics serve to guide the application of assistance. When such assistance is applied, while striving not to marginalize morale or treat individuals de minimisly, personal ethics are the guiding principles which define an individual's personal moral philosophy. These principles are the basis of character. Our principles ultimately determine which decisions we make and how we feel about those decisions in the long run. It has been suggested that the self reflexive nature derived from our ethics is what separates human beings from other animals. These ethics, where applied, guide our growth and that of our societies.
There is no field where this is more apparent than in the healthcare industry. Arguably, the higher costs associated with healthcare and the potential repercussions raise the moral and ethical requirements. This scenario presents the opportunity for an industry truly focused on human well being and the betterment of mankind.
My morals and ethics, like many in our society, started to form well before I was aware of what they were or what they meant.
The focus, in my life, on dignity and respect was little more than an afterthought. Despite that fact essential and all too familiar adages such as, “treat others as you would like to be treated,” and “be yourself,” were frequent in my home and school life. At the age of seven this came to a head in a confrontation.
My mother had called a cab for a ride to the airport. We waited 20 minutes passed the agreed time, then 30 minutes, and then 40 minutes. When it appeared the cab would not arrive timely my mother made the decision to make other arrangements. As we were getting into a car, with a family friend, the cab driver finally arrived. “No, I’m here see, I’ll take you to the airport,” he said, as he snatched the suitcase presumptuously from my mother. “Thank you,” she responded, “however; I’ve already made other arrangements,” snatching the bag back calmly. Obviously defeated the cab driver returned to his cab and proceeded to utter a colorful slurry of words. Words I was all too familiar with as the kind you didn’t say to people's mothers. I walked, determined, in front of the cab and proceeded to harass the cab driver with a barrage of questions such as: “Do you feel it is appropriate to treat people that way.” Given his late arrival and his demeanor I questioned his perspective. The point was quickly driven home. I took it one step further by questioning if he would allow someone to speak to his mother that way and if so, what his mother would think of him. To my unabashed surprise the cab driver apologized. He then, somewhat begrudgingly, drove off. This is when i learned about the power of empathy and gradually through the years this grew into an understanding of dignity and respect.
