Healthcare Ethics and Social Responsibilities

Ethical Dilemma at the Workplace

An ethical dilemma that I may encounter at the healthcare workplace is a situation where a toxic colleague of mine is stealing some of the office resources for his personal use. This is an unfair situation because these supplies are provided to employees for office use only. Taking any of these office resources to home or for personal use is the dishonesty at workplace due to which I feel that I have a social responsibility towards my workplace to figure out what needs to be done to prevent this.

Ethical Problem-Solving Methodology

Firstly, I would need to figure out what exactly the problem is from every possible angle. Then, I would check my facts to figure out what makes me uncomfortable about that specific problem to identify the group of people I feel are being discriminated against. For instance, the colleague stealing the office supplies is discriminating against other people at work who work and use everything at their workspace honestly. Further, to identify this ethical problem, I would use steps suggested by Corey et al “Six-Step Ethical Decision-Making Model” which include:

1. Identification of the problem
2. Identification of the potential issues or risks involved
3. Review of the relevant ethical guidelines
4. Know-how of the applicable laws and regulations
5. Consultation
6. Consideration of probable courses of action (Corey et al., 2024)

Possible Solutions

One of the possible solutions to this ethical problem is confronting that toxic colleague for his unethical behavior. I would then report this problem to the supervisor because this issue will damage work relationships with other colleagues. To prevent my colleague from perpetuating his unethical behavior again, I would recommend supervisor not ignore this issue and take potential disciplinary action against him as every decision in such a situation carries potential impacts for other individuals at work.

Impacts of the Decisions

I always believe in maintaining an equal, fair, honest, and prospective work environment where everyone has equal rights. I have this firm belief that an honest and equal work environment thrives more effectively than a work environment where individuals are not honest and true to their work or responsibilities. The issue concerning my colleague is that he is discriminating against other co-workers at work so my personal values of honesty, equality, and integrity influence me to report this issue to the supervisor of the care facility.

Impacts of Ethical Theories

As a healthcare manager of the care facility where an issue is reported, two ethical theories that would influence my decision are:

• Utilitarianism: This ethical theory emphasizes the greatest good for the greatest number (Barbara & Andrew, 2012). This concept might lead me to make and reconsider my decision regarding confronting that toxic employee and reporting his unethical behavior to the supervisor for the overall betterment of the workplace. I would reconsider the broader impacts of my decision keeping the workplace integrity in mind.
• Deontology: This theory focuses on rules and duty (Barbara & Andrew, 2012). This theory would impact my decision as I will report workplace theft to the supervisor and the executives of the care facility because such an act is against the company’s policy.

Impacts of Ethical Principles

Considering my role and position as a healthcare manager at the workspace, two ethical principles that would impact my decision to report my colleague’s unethical behavior to the supervisor include:

• Nonmaleficence: This principle refers to the idea of “doing no harm” to anyone or preventing harm from happening. This principle might influence my decision and I will consider the potential harm that may be caused due to reporting the crime to the supervisor such as the employee might lose job.
• Justice: A just and fair work environment is what thrives well among its competitors. So, this principle will push me to report the workplace theft of my colleague to the supervisor to ensure fairness in the workplace. The principle of justice will also ensure fair and just treatment as well as resources for all employees.

Future Implications

Using a formal ethical problem-solving methodology like using “Six-Step Ethical Decision-Making Model” to solve the ethical issue I encounter would help ensure a thoughtful approach to potential ethical dilemmas. Using such a methodology would encourage consideration of all possible and potential perspectives as well as relevant factors. The implementation of such problem-solving methods subsequently leads to ethical and just decisions in the future. This would also lead to making and implementing a list of options with a variety of solutions and decisions that could address such unethical behavior in the workplace in the future.

References

Barbara, M., & Andrew, F. (2012). Ethics: Theory and Contemporary Issues. WADSWORTH: India.

Corey, G., Corey, M. S., & Callanan, P. (2024). Issues and ethics in the helping professions. Brooks/Cole Pacific Grove, CA.