PHIL 2 Philosophy: Ethics in Contemporary Society Week 5 Topic Outlines

Week 5, PHIL25.2 Week 5 Bioethics and the Ethical Issues in Medicine – Chap. 13 Business and Media Ethics – Business and Media Ethics – Chap. 14

Week 5, PHIL25.3 Topics 1 & 2: Bioethics and the Ethical Issues in Medicine Rights and obligations of health care professionals, patients, and their families Truth telling, confidentiality, and informed consent between professionals and patients Allocation of scarce medical resources, behavior control, human experimentation, and genetics

Week 5, PHIL25.4 Rights and Obligations of Health Care Professionals, Patients, and Families Three views of the health care relationship Paternalism: professional should take a parental role Engineering: professional is value-free and purely technical Priestly: professional makes decisions for patient’s best interests

Week 5, PHIL25.5 Rights and Obligations of Health Care Professionals, Patients, and Families (continued) Radical individualism: patients have absolute rights over their own bodies and can accept or reject all recommendations Reciprocal view: patients and families are members of the team that includes health care professionals

Week 5, PHIL25.6 Truth Telling, Confidentiality, & Informed Consent between Professionals & Patients To what extent should patients and their families be told the truth about their medical situations? Informed consent: formal procedure in which patients or families agree in writing to procedures that carry some risk

Week 5, PHIL25.7 Truth Telling, Confidentiality, & Informed Consent between Professionals & Patients (continued) Doctors, patients, and families vary in their reactions and requirements for truth-telling and informed consent. Confidentiality: whatever a doctor and patient discuss and whatever a patient reveals in this relationship is held in strictest confidence.

Week 5, PHIL25.8 Truth Telling, Confidentiality, & Informed Consent between Professionals & Patients (continued) Yet law requires reporting of STDs and certain infectious diseases by name. HIV+ or AIDS results can be reported anonymously. How can we protect patients’ privacy and still protect innocent partners and caregivers?

Week 5, PHIL25.9 Allocation of Scarce Medical Resources, Behavior Control, Human Experimentation, and Genetics Who gets medical resources when there isn’t enough to go around? How do we determine what is unacceptable behavior? Which means of behavior control are ethical and which are not? Who decides when behavior control should be used?

Week 5, PHIL25.10 Allocation of Scarce Medical Resources, Behavior Control, Human Experimentation, and Genetics (cont) Human experimentation: use of human beings in experiments for their own therapy, for the good of humanity, or for the advancement of knowledge Which humans should be experimented upon and under what conditions?

Week 5, PHIL25.11 Allocation of Scarce Medical Resources, Behavior Control, Human Experimentation, and Genetics (cont) Genetics issues concern the manipulation and control of the human genetic makeup. As technology advances, we can correct genetic deficiencies, create life in the lab, and clone/create ideal human beings. Should we?

Week 5, PHIL25.12 Topics 3 & 4: Business and Media Ethics Need for business and media ethics Rights, Obligations, Justice, Truth Telling, and Honesty in Business Ethics Rights and obligations between employers and employees; business and consumers

Week 5, PHIL25.13 Topics 3 & 4: Business and Media Ethics (cont.) Advertising, business, media, the environment, affirmative action, reverse discrimination, corporate greed, and sexual harassment Determining if actions taken are considered moral or immoral

Week 5, PHIL25.14 Need for Business and Media Ethics Business involves the establishment and maintenance of vital and significant relationships among human beings – employers, employees, shareholders, customers, colleagues, and consumers. Media (print and electronic) have tremendous power over opinion and perception of the truth.

Week 5, PHIL25.15 Rights, Obligations, Justice, Truth Telling, and Honesty in Business Ethics Rights: things to which humans are entitled by law, morality, or tradition Obligations: Duty people have toward one another by law, morality, or tradition to see that their rights are protected and provided them

Week 5, PHIL25.16 Rights, Obligations, Justice, Truth Telling, and Honesty in Business Ethics (continued) Justice Exchange justice – reimbursement for products or services rendered Distributive justice – distribution of profits among owners, manager, employees, shareholders Social justice – how businesses and their members treat consumers and society

Week 5, PHIL25.17 Rights, Obligations, Justice, Truth Telling, and Honesty in Business Ethics (continued) Truth telling In contracts In employer-employee relations With shareholders In advertising

Week 5, PHIL25.18 Rights, Obligations, Justice, Truth Telling, and Honesty in Business Ethics (continued) Honesty Keeping agreements Admitting to errors Providing honest work for pay received Providing appropriate wages Setting honest prices Giving best possible quality for price Eliminating corrupt business practices

Week 5, PHIL25.19 Rights & Obligations between Employers & Employees; Business & Consumers Rights and obligations between employers and employees Work Wages Security

Week 5, PHIL25.20 Rights & Obligations between Employers & Employees; Business & Consumers (cont) Rights and obligations between businesses and consumers Safety Fairness Honesty Value

Week 5, PHIL25.21 Other Ethical Issues Related to Business What ethical issues affect Advertising Business Media Environment

Week 5, PHIL25.22 Other Ethical Issues Related to Business (continued) What ethical issues affect Affirmative Action Reverse Discrimination Corporate Greed Sexual Harassment

Week 5, PHIL25.23 Determining If Actions Taken Are Considered Moral or Immoral Analyze specific case studies from your text to determine if actions taken are considered moral or immoral What code of ethics are you using to decide?

Week 5, PHIL25.24 Week 5 Thiroux, Jacques P. Ethics – Theory and Practice, 8th ed. Chapters 13 and 14