Personal ethics refers to a person's daily consideration of ethical issues about what they personally
believe to be right. In contrast, professional ethics refers to a body of guidelines designed to address the
ethical concerns of professionals, organizations, and clients (Ruggiero, 2012).
As a NA, I faced a conflict between work and home responsibilities. I was expected to stay if a staff
member failed to show up for the night shift, causing me to be unable to leave. My grandmother was
hospitalized due to a brain bleed, so I could not work the evening shift. Family members' presence
helped alleviate physical strain on the nurses, and the stress at work and night shift not showing up
increased my anxiety over her hospitalization.
In my situation, honesty and compassion would have been the moral principles that should have been
used. How come? Kindhearted as my present patients would get ignored if they did not receive
assistance right away. They also need to get the right attention. I had to be honest with myself and
acknowledge that my grandma had the right number of caregivers to appropriately tend to her needs.
Alternatively, I could have just swapped places with my brother, having him work the night shift while I
took on his morning shift. In contrast, if I left, my existing patients would not have the same resources or
caregivers. According to a social contract ethicist, moral and political norms of conduct are established
by society as a whole (Weale, 2017).
Obviously, having coworkers who can pick up your work in emergencies is great. In my opinion, leaving to
take care of my grandmother would have been the wisest course of action. I would not have left unless
my patients were safe and under the care of others or if my grandma had someone already there. I say
this because I have discovered that work is a never-ending process from working for various companies.
References
Fowler, M. D. M. (2015). Guide to the code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements:
development, interpretation, and application. American Nurses Association.
Ruggiero, V. R. (2012). Thinking critically about ethical issues. McGraw-Hill.
Weale, A. (2017). Associative Obligation and the Social Contract. Philosophia, 45 (2), 463-476.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11406-016-9797-5
