example, immunization programs, research opportunities, harmful practices, financial assistance, etc. (Munson, 2014).
Principle of Utility
The principle of utility is essentially the balance between the principles of beneficence and non-maleficence. It is defined as acting a manner that produces the greatest benefit and the least harm to an individual (Munson, 2014). This principle is significant in healthcare because it can be applied by healthcare professionals to help weigh the benefits of test and treatments compared to the harm. For example, if a medical diagnosis suggests that treatment through surgery is the best option for a patient, but the physician believes that the patient is not a candidate for surgery due to the patient’s medical condition, the physician is practicing the principle of utility. Healthcare professionals must consider the harm and possible death (morbidity and mortality) of the patient before proceeding with diagnosis, surgery, and treatment (Munson, 2014).
Principle of Distributive Justice Human beings all have the right to be treated justly or fairly. The principle of distributive justice is a form of comparative justice – the application of laws/rules and the distribution of burdens and benefits (Munson, 2014). Distributive justice specifically deals with the distribution of benefits, such as healthcare benefits. If a patient cannot pay for healthcare, if the patient is not education, if the patient is not a working member of
* Justice - concerns the distribution of scarce health resources, and the decision of who gets what treatment (fairness and equality).
(2) Beneficence: “Minimizing possible harms and maximizing benefits”. The medical practitioners should use procedures that do not exposed subjects to risk.
In The Republic, the great philosopher Plato attempts to reveal through the character and dialogues of Socrates that justice is better when it is the good for which men must strive for, regardless of whether they could be unjust and still be rewarded. His method is to use dialectic, the asking and answering of questions. This method leads the audience from one point to another, supposedly with indisputable logic by obtaining agreement to each point before going on to the next, therefore, building an argument.
Justice and equality are both two very abstract concepts with numerous controversial definitions that are never agreed upon. Depending on the situations, justice can be the same as equality, or not. In the modern world, justice is often used as a political slogan, rather than a meaningful pursuit. Meanwhile equality is also one of the leading ideals of political movements, such as equal rights movements for marriage, voting, etc. In order to answer the question: is justice the same as equality, it is necessary to understand the precise meaning of equality and justice, the relationship between the two, the measurement of the two, and their current and historical status.
In the United States the publicly financed Medicare and Medicaid coverage for certain disadvantaged groups, and the worker’s compensation program for those injured at work, are the type of health care insurance that are based on the social justice distribution principle.
Health justice is a broad term. For me it means that everyone is able to receive health care despite where they are, what their background is, and how much money they have. Although this is the case, the current world health system isn’t like this. Health care is not as accessible as it should be. Many poorer, developing countries are still facing shortages of health care clinics in their area. The people in the world who do have health care, on the other hand, are the ones who are well off and have more money. Thankfully, due to the efforts of many different individuals and organizations, the healthcare system is slowly shifting over to where we want it to be. Not saying that it is perfect, we still have a long ways to go before we are able to create total health justice, but we are on our way for a world with health care that everyone is able to access and get the proper care they deserve.
Utilitarianism also known as the principle of utility is an ethical theory proposed by early philosophers. This theory implies that actions are only judged by its consequences whether they are good or bad. One should perform a particular action because it will yield the best results for all. This approach also analysis the cost and benefit relationship. The downfall with this theory is that not everyone benefits (Fremgen, 2016).
Principlism is a common practical approach to any bioethical dilemmas in medicine. According to Lewis Vaughn, there are five principles in Principlism that can provide a framework for reasoning through moral medical issues, which include autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, utility, and justice. Autonomy refers to the capacity of a person for making decisions for his/her own life. Nonmaleficence refers to doing absolutely no harm to others in any cases. Beneficence defines the right action to do is to bring good to others. Utility refers to always balancing out the harm by the good of an action. Justice refers to everyone should get an equal and fair treatment. The aforementioned five principles are supposed to provide some general guidelines for anyone who is
-Individuals should have the sense of fairness in, "what is distributed" or "what is right."
However, as time went on, several problems arose which had to do with the principle of justice in healthcare. In America, it is the accepted norm that it is unjust to treat one person better or worse than another person, in similar circumstances (Tong, 2007, p.29). In an attempt
First this essay will demonstrate how Rawls’s theory will affect the society and its structure in terms of basic social institutions, wealth distribution and major economic limits and opportunities. Then, the essay will demonstrate the same for Nozick’s theory on distributive justice. I will then describe, in which society I would prefer to live in and why.
decisions and protecting them from harm, but also by making efforts to secure their wellbeing. Such treatment falls under the principle of beneficence. The term "beneficence" is
Discrimination in health care should be resolved at all cost. If the distributive justice agrees that health care is a primary right, universal health care would be implied.
Distributive justice refers to what society or a larger group owes its individual members in proportion to the individual’s needs, contribution and responsibility, the resources available to society or the organization, and society’s or the organization’s responsibility to the common good. In health care, distributive justice requires that everyone receive equitable access to basic healthcare necessary for living (uco.edu. Legal and Ethical Issues in Healthcare/Ethical
Over the decades, the concept of justice has been continually evolving. This is occurring based upon different moral or legal interpretations. Evidence of this can be seen with observations from Burke (2011) who said, "Few things are of more importance to a society than its concept of justice. This is because it is justice that provides criterion for the legitimate use of force. In the name of justice people are detained, arrested, handcuffed, put on trial and punished. This concept is used to provide every society with some kind of social order. Over the last 200 years, a revolution has taken place with these principles. Our idea of it is what we employ, when dealing with ordinary individuals in daily life including: making agreements, paying bills, resolving disputes and putting criminals in jail. This is a concept that is as old as recorded history and it is familiar to people everywhere. What makes it so unique is that these ideas are constantly changing which focuses on society as a whole and how people are interacting with each other. " (Burke)