A Boy With Cerebral Palsy

A sensitive topic in the United States today revolves around the issue of healthcare. Is health care a basic human right or is it just a privilege to those who are able to afford it? Health care in the United States is in desperate need of reform. The Affordable Care Act takes that stance that health care is in fact a basic human right and that everyone should have health insurance. When the term “basic human rights” is used, most people think of the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This doesn’t necessarily mean that people should be forced to sustain others’ lives, or that they have the responsibility to make others happy because they have a “right” to pursue happiness. You are born with these basics rights that no

“For decades in this country we have accepted the barbaric consequences of a profit-driven health care system that bullies and denies us basic freedoms. Therefore, we are not free” (Redmond 76). Since Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law in 2010, health care has been the topic of many heated political conversation. At the root of that discussion is one underlying question: is health care a moral right? Helen Redmond takes the stance that “Access to Health Care Is a Human Right”. Redmond states five different examples of why health care is a human right. In addition to giving statistics on why we need to reform health care, Redmond give us examples of real Americans who have struggled with the big bully know as the greedy healthcare providers. Leonard Peikoff takes the the opposite view by claiming that “Health Care Is Not a Right”. Peikoff first dissects the concept of morality and how it is explained in the Declaration of Independence. He then goes further to state that giving health care for free to other is actually violating the rights of the doctors that treat them. I believe that Helen Redmond made the best argument.

The American Medical Association (AMA) published a Code of Ethics for Physicians that includes a list of certain principles physicians should follow in order to be good physicians, practicing in an ethical fashion. This list, which was first adopted in June of 1957 and revised as recently as June of 2001, demonstrates some principles that are not universally accepted to be critical to the ethical practice of a physician. In particular, all physicians do not completely believe the claim that “A physician shall support access to medical care for all people” (Principles of Medical Ethics). Theorist, H. Tristam Engelhardt believes that the lack of access to care for some may be unfortunate, but it is not unfair and that this access does not need to be mandated, nor does believing it should be make you an ethical physician. In fact, Engelhardt supremely believes that by providing access of care to all, you will hurt certain patients that already have access to care, negating your function as a physician practicing beneficence. Engelhardt would retract this statement from the Principles of Ethics. However, this belief of and drive to implement access of care to all is critical to one’s job as a physician and it goes against core values of physicians to claim otherwise. Theorists such as Tom Beauchamp and Norman Daniels would agree that the universal access to health care is a critical component of the values physicians hold.

Cerebral palsy is a brain and nervous system disorder that was discovered in the mid nineteenth century by a group of people with a generous commitment of improving the lives of people with disability (MyChildatCerebralpalsy.org, 2014). One of such individuals is William Little, who pioneered customary studies relating to cerebral palsy by using his childhood disability to substantiate the causal relationships between natal complications and physical and

When I first decided that I wanted to further my education in nursing, I was inspired by my job as a Home-Health Aide. At the age of sixteen, I started working for a company called Miracles In Motions. I worked with individuals who are mentally and physically disabled; assisting them with all their daily needs. One day on my job, I was introduced to Mr. Peloquin, a man with Cerebral Palsy. I introduced myself to him and he began telling me stories about himself and his disability. I could tell that he enjoyed my company and he expressed that he does not get to tell his stories often. The story that really caught my interest involved his recent hospital visit. He told me how mistreated he had been by the hospital staff due to his disability; there was no interaction from the health professionals, and he was not treated like a human being. He stressed to me that he hated the way he was treated and that this was just one of multiple similar situations. Conversing with Mr. Peloquin that day gave me a heavy

From a social justice perspective, quality healthcare is perceived as an innate right of every individual. The problem with this perspective is it is not a universally held sentiment. For example, individuals would argue from an economic standpoint that social justice is a “value” and healthcare is a commodity which drives our nation’s economy, thus presenting

The philosophy relayed by the book’s author consistently leads back to the moral question that must be asked in the initial design of the healthcare system. That determination has to do as to whether the government has a duty to act when there are those within their own country do not have equitable access to hospitals and doctors for the treatment of their conditions.14

Equitable coverage and access to health services is a goal for states across the globe as healthcare is viewed by many major voices as a human right (UN, 1948; WHO, 2016a; NESRI, 2016; Obama, 2014). Many scholars reason that equitable coverage and access to health services is ethical (Aday, 1993; Putsch and Pololi, 2004; Kasule, 2012; Hurley, 2001). Specifically, Jeremiah Hurley (2001) argues that healthcare equity is ethically valuable because of its contribution to health and thus, “the ethically justified distribution of access to and utilization of needed health services is one which generates the desired level and distribution of health” (p. 235). From his argument, access is seen to be a central idea in the debate

There has been a sharp increase in articles in recent years addressing ethics in healthcare with the rapid reforms and the millions added to healthcare coverage. The American Medical Association published just this month an article titled, “Ethics in Expanding Health Coverage through the private market”. (2015 #13). As this may not address specific compliance concerns, it does present an over all concern for the implications of the ACA, primarily being that this law does not guarantee coverage for all citizens and the subsequent burden placed on those who choose to purchase under its protection. The influx of funds to private markets gives them increased political power. It is the use of this power to examine and include into compliance

During college, I also had an opportunity to shadow a group of medical professionals on a summer medical relief trip to Peru. On the trip, I realized life was so much bigger than my self-contained bubble of worries and concerns. Students from The University of Illinois’ Christian healthcare association aided a team composed of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and therapists to run free clinics in Peru. I experienced first-hand how powerful it was when different health professionals worked together towards a common goal. My initial wonderment of the mountainous landscape was quickly put aside overshadowed after I realized the team did not have the resources to meet the needs of the large mass of local Quechua people that had gathered at our clinic. It was heartbreaking to witness problems that were otherwise so easily treatable in America. As resources dwindled, I noticed a therapist who was teaching proper lifting techniques to prevent injuries. He noted the prevalence of lower back pain largely due to the heavy labor a majority of the local men did for a living. This was significant as the physical therapist not only treated the symptoms, but rather empowered the local people to better themselves daily. I witnessed people being inspired to care

I was born on June 28,1999. Although i was sure to have an interesting life, I did not know what challenges I would face along the way. Doctors had diagnosed me with Cerebral Palsy when I was born. My parents were told that there was no way I would be able to live a normal life without being in a wheelchair.

Many health care providers have broken the code of ethics. Healthcare professionals should be promoting the dignity of the profession with honestly, integrity, and accountability. Nonetheless, every profession must maintain the level of competency and seeking trust and confidence of all patients and their families by promoting the right to privacy for all individuals and protecting their confidential information to the fullest extent permitted by law (NAHQ, 2011). It is unfortunate that there are numerous ethical challenges that impacts the health care settings. In order to meet high expectation of patients and their family, health care must improve in quality, access, and cost as stated in the triple aim of the ACA. The triple aim is to improve the population’s health, patient experience of care, and to reduce per capita cost (Molinari, 2014). Health care delivery system and its professionals must be practicing behavior that results in the greatest good for the largest population, which is known as the utilitarian theory; however, some argues that there is not enough money to pay for the health care of the total U.S. population, thus, considering the denial of care for the undocumented and low-income individuals (Morrison, 2014, p. 383). It is atrocious to deny care to the vulnerable individuals or vulnerable

In the mid-1800s a doctor named William Little recorded the first case of Cerebral Palsy. He noticed the symptoms in children and recorded them as “stiff, spastic muscles in their legs, as well as slightly in their arms”(Cerebral Palsy Source, 2016). These spastic muscles make it difficult for children, as well as adults, to function with their everyday tasks such as eating, walking, and talking. William Little came to the conclusion that children who developed Cerebral Palsy had a lack of oxygen flowing to their head when they were born, causing damage to certain brain tissues. In 1897 Sigmund Freud, one of the worlds most well-known psychiatrists, said that children with Cerebral Palsy had mental and visual issues along with the

There are many variations that are often hidden within the special population. As of today, the health care system inhabits the margins by exposing impoverished individual. However, the individuals that are part of the special population each carries a unique set of needs. The special population can consist of the uninsured, minorities, children, disabled people, elderly, prisoners, pregnant women, students, and sadly to say veterans and military personnel. Furthermore, foundations of the special population consist of maintaining the self-perceived notion that fairness will apply to all individuals. In addition, it is important within the special population to distinguish the risk factors that are involved in health care. The best way to complete such a task is applying nonprejudice judgments. Individuals that make decisions for the special population often describe the services as insensitive in regards to understanding and accepting integration into health care. According to (Shi & Singh, 2015, p. 417) “to the framework, vulnerability is determined by a convergence of (1) predisposing, (2) enabling, and (3) need characteristics at both individual and ecological (contextual) levels.” Within the paper, I will discuss the factors that are attributed to the special population. The characteristic within the special population poses a weakness that stems from insurance coverage, and access.

When my medical ethics professor discussed whether or not health care is “special,” my initial reaction was that was a ridiculous question to ask. Of course health care is special, a person’s health is a major factor in determining their ability to function, contribute to society and essentially allowing them to reach their full potential. Upon further thought, I realized if I were to support health care as “special,” my support couldn’t stop there. As I learned more about the impact education, socioeconomic status, discrimination, location and the myriad of other influences have on health outcomes, my interest continued to grow. My research increased my desire to be a physician and not only be able to interact with and help individual patients but also to play a part in the work happening around the world to widen the view of health care and to improve health through creative and novel measures.