tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post2416653760531412260..comments2023-03-24T02:12:55.190-07:00Comments on Barash's Bioethics Blog: Fisticuffs over woman in laborDr. Carol Isaacson Barashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04813161090432218664noreply@blogger.comBlogger74125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-11397262813738362542010-09-16T11:30:54.593-07:002010-09-16T11:30:54.593-07:00I don't think it's unrealistic for doctors...I don't think it's unrealistic for doctors to be held to higher expectations than the average person. It is part of their practice to be at least somewhat accountable for the lives of the people under their care and therefore, since they have greater concerns and responsibility than the average person, their moral conduct should reflect their responsibilities accordingly. Every decision they make in regards to the health of another person will affect someone other than themselves. If I decide to make an unhealthy decision, that is my own issue to deal with. If a doctor decides to drink on the job or behave in a manner that is inappropriate to his/her profession, that will affect both him/herself as well as the patients and other health professionals that he/she comes in contact with. I do agree that a doctor is only human like the rest of us but there are certain responsibilities that come with the profession that call for a greater concern for discretion and competency.<br /><br />-Farrah B.Farrah Belizairehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01279814603108014976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-24774846272850854292010-09-14T18:24:36.063-07:002010-09-14T18:24:36.063-07:00The impetus forcing the physician to act while at ...The impetus forcing the physician to act while at work is unethical. A higher moral standard is required in this situation. No other profession takes an oath before practicing shows the gravity of the responsibilities of this profession. The Hippocratic Oath specifically says physicians have special obligations to all my fellow human beings, therefore need to make the patients' welfare their main priority. Even without professionalism, it is common sense and out of mutual respect for physicians to act officiously and devote all their energy to their patients because patients had trusted them with their lives. Physicians should recognize the peril the profession and society are under when their people fail ethically, teach and try to uphold a higher moral standard. There is a bigger issue needs to addressed. Assume moral systems exist to guide inter-personal relationships and protect society's integrity, and assume moral systems evolved to appropriately meet the needs of the societies they serve.Handi W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17369409867926479863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-50439017649302764622010-09-14T17:04:33.570-07:002010-09-14T17:04:33.570-07:00I believe that doctor could potentially risk his o...I believe that doctor could potentially risk his or her patient's life if he or she choose to act immorally. The fact that they are doctors does not exclude them from normal human emotions and lapses of judgement. I would be really torn to argue the doctor should be judged as acting in accordance with moral standards by saving a life. In Aristotle's perspective, health is a balance and his principle could be applied here.<br /><br />Handi WuAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-60313626546213764092010-09-14T16:45:34.953-07:002010-09-14T16:45:34.953-07:00I believe doctors should be held to higher moral s...I believe doctors should be held to higher moral standards than people in other professions. After all, they are in the 'business of saving lives', and as such, are responsible for those lives - they play God on a regular basis! The responsibility associated with this profession is heightened by the fact that, in this era, a doctor usually knows much more about patients ailments than patients and their families know. In most cases, patients trust their physicians blindly, and those who choose this profession should have moral standards high enough to appreciate that. In this case, neither the woman involved nor her husband had the expertise necessary to deliver her baby safe, and the two doctors who did have that expertise completely disregarded her needs. Even if their fight did not directly cause damage to the baby, their lack of moral responsibility certainly did. Any professional should leave their personal life outside the work place; physicians should set a solid example of professional, moral behavior.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05774571949602865298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-480744253584262532010-09-14T16:44:28.612-07:002010-09-14T16:44:28.612-07:00I would not say that doctors should have higher mo...I would not say that doctors should have higher moral standards than other people in general, per se, but I do believe that they should have high moral standards in the workplace, where they are being acknowledged as professional experts. They should conduct themselves in the service of their patients, namely, with proper etiquette and sensitivity. <br /><br />Having been patients, we know that we look to respect our doctors and believe in their competence. We may not like them because we do not like being patients, but mostly we are confused and searching for guidance, knowledge, and the right direction in which to handle our medicinal needs. If our doctor is our “rock” in which we invest our trust and in with whom we find comfort by their mere presence, we can be confident that they will place our needs and concerns as a top priority. <br /><br />If our doctor is letting his or her personal details interfere with providing us such reassurance and mutual respect, we will not be at ease in his or her hands and may move to another institution where we can find it. Doctors should exhibit professional and therefore personal integrity, because in doing so they will have the respect of their patients and colleagues, which in turn will increase the efficiency and productivity of their healthcare. Had this been the case here, unnecessary suffering of the patient as well as of the hospital's reputation may have been avoided.sjhart3https://www.blogger.com/profile/00326624446206802782noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-30815306546274969102010-09-14T15:36:45.511-07:002010-09-14T15:36:45.511-07:00I am not sure that moral standards are the issue s...I am not sure that moral standards are the issue so much as professional standards in this scenario. What the two doctors did would have been unacceptable in an office job as well; the fact that this unfortunate woman was relying on them to deliver her baby when they decided to throw a fit just makes things that much worse. Even if doctors are not held to a higher moral standard than the general population, they should at least be expected to refrain from letting their own personal issues distract them from giving their patients the care that they need and deserve. These doctors, obviously, are not holding themselves to very high professional or moral standards. One of the doctors even goes so far as to try to make excuses for his behavior, claiming that there was no link between the fight and the complications. I do not think that it is realistic to hold physicians to a higher moral standard than the rest of us, but the behavior of these two doctors is inexcusable. <br /><br />- Rachel CorradoRachel Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13260974456981154289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-11343998916808488262010-09-14T13:12:06.931-07:002010-09-14T13:12:06.931-07:00Medical professionals are and should be held to a ...Medical professionals are and should be held to a higher standard of behavior. When we walk into a physician's office, most of us automatically judge their character. Because they are providers, we expect that they are people that we can trust with our lives. If we were uncertain about their overall makeup, we are not as likely to trust them as our providers.<br /><br /> After Medical School, the "Hypocratic Oath" is taken which states that they are, from that moment on, medical professionals and should act as such. They are obligated to not only care for their patient but also to separate their professional life from their personal life. If they have situations in their life that are stressful, they ought not to allow them to cross over into their life as a primary care provider. As a physician or any health care provider, the number one duty is to care for their patients. When something like a personal dispute gets in the way, they are not fulfilling their main obligation. I believe it is just to hold physicians to a higher standard ultimately because they should honor their main duty, which is caring for others.Rachel O.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15997666735563978281noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-38435694383638189962010-09-14T11:32:10.709-07:002010-09-14T11:32:10.709-07:00I do not necessary believe that doctors and medica...I do not necessary believe that doctors and medical practitioners ought to hold a higher moral standards than those in other professions, however, they ought to adhere to these codes of behavior more strictly and intensively since their jobs deal with something vulnerable and irreversible, a human's life.<br /><br />In everyday life, each individual is expected to conform to a set of shared moral standards in order for society to goes on, for example, we should respect and/or have courtesy for others. Because medical practitioners usually regard as prestigious people that does not mean they are demanded, by society, to be more respectful than others. A gardener ought to be respectful as much as a doctor ought to be. <br /><br />However, when it comes to work setting, in the hospital or clinic particularly where medical practitioners deal and handle lives and well being of others, it is then that they oblige to conduct and act according to 'the same' moral standards but more strictly and seriously. These people have chosen a career that put themselves into a position that requires expertise, professionalism, trust and great responsibility. They have to understand that at work, it is critical to uphold moral standards more intensively than they might need to in their own time. <br /><br />Ming OnsriUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01721850577818766473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-63102628895904085172010-09-14T11:30:04.586-07:002010-09-14T11:30:04.586-07:00Simply put, there should undoubtedly be certain ex...Simply put, there should undoubtedly be certain expectations and codes of conduct in which all types of medical professionals should adhere to. Whether it be and EMT, a Paramedic, Physicians Assistant or Physician, we must strive to hold all medical professionals to the highest standard in society since they are the ones who are looking after the wellbeing of others.<br /> The expectations of physicians should only be heightened considering their higher professional position compared to most occupations. Physicians are unarguably the top leaders in today's society, and although every human being should be held to the same standards on an ethical basis, we must realize that it's impossible to do so. <br /> With great success and accomplishment comes great expectation, and in this case, the physician chose to break not only his own moral and obligatory code, but the principles of autonomy and beneficence as well. The patient should be able to trust the doctor with his/her life, as well as the babies life, and although the physician may have been dealing with a great amount of stress, acts of this selfishness and maleficence should not be tolerated. We cannot have immoral practitioners when dealing with something as serious as the physical and mental wellbeing of a patient.<br /> Physicians are paragons of medical success, and should be accountable for higher reputations and ethical standards. <br /><br />-Ryan S.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-88752343563456027092010-09-14T09:53:33.039-07:002010-09-14T09:53:33.039-07:00Medical professionals should be held to a higher m...Medical professionals should be held to a higher moral standard in the work place. They have greater responsibilities to the people they serve, as they directly affect people's health. In this article, it is clear that the doctors acted in an immature way, with extreme consequences. The family placed their trust in these two doctors to act in a professional way and this trust was violated. The doctors acted with seeming disregard for the female patient, instead focusing on their personal differences. Although it is true that doctors are only human, when lives are at stake we must hold them to a higher standard.Allyson Papacciohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04651088384114412356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-88974150269876177792010-09-14T05:23:01.519-07:002010-09-14T05:23:01.519-07:00The moral standards we apply to medical practition...The moral standards we apply to medical practitioners should not be higher than the moral standards we apply to other people; rather, being professionals in their field our expectation for them to always adhere to these standards under all circumstances is what separates them. In our society, all members are presumed to have an inherent moral capacity and to act accordingly by it, regardless of race, class, etc. For this, the moral standards of society apply to the whole, not just a particular subset. <br /><br />In this specific case, these medical professionals violated the moral principles of autonomy, beneficence, and nonmaleficence. The violation of such moral standards throughout society is not surprising, as it remains more comprehensible when a layperson disregards these moral standards. However, as medical professionals operating under an oath, it is their obligation to absolutely ensure moral standards are abided by. Higher moral standards should not be desired from them simply because of their title, but rather the same moral standards that govern that society and that occupation should be expected met, with no mistakes. As medical professionals, their expectations are raised for their compliance to moral standards; the standards themselves need not be applied higher in an already morally just society.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-58451559335320616272010-09-14T00:05:10.505-07:002010-09-14T00:05:10.505-07:00There should be a difference in the expectations o...There should be a difference in the expectations of moral standards between medical practitioners and people of other professions because medical practitioners hold a greater amount of responsibility than most people. Doctors should have higher standards because they are constantly handling the health and lives of the population, and without these standards there would be a higher risk of failure. It is suitable for there to be such an expectation because it brings about a higher level of professionalism that should be implemented at all times as opposed to the type of behavior that was described in the article. It is not acceptable for doctors to be acting in that sort of way, especially when they are attending a woman that is going into labor. These high standards have created the social norm that personifies what the behavior of a professional physician should be, which includes keeping their composure at all times and acting in such a way that will not harm others or put their health in jeopardy.Jennifer Canohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00259415589491328280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-27705899274844515002010-09-13T21:53:22.832-07:002010-09-13T21:53:22.832-07:00I believe every human being should live by the hig...I believe every human being should live by the highest moral standards, and thus I do not expect doctors to adhere to an even higher moral code. If individuals hold themselves to the standards of right and wrong, it is not possible for the medical practitioner to live a life more righteous than others. I think within any profession the professional is there to guide, protect, help, or benefit their clients. Policemen have to be held to high moral standards for a corrupt cop would allow criminals to harm civilians. A lawyer must be held to high moral standards because they are ensuring that their clients are treated fairly by the law. Even football players should have the highest of moral standards and set the right examples because many kids look up to them as role models. I believe teachers, clergy, or any of those in positions of authority or responsibility should share the highest of moral standards.<br /><br />-Andrew SchiffAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16916025573466514795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-50069130639727101462010-09-13T20:59:41.394-07:002010-09-13T20:59:41.394-07:00Doctors are highly respected and often idolized du...Doctors are highly respected and often idolized due to their expertise. Consequently, the medical profession holds a public prestige where doctors are expected to devote healing powers to each of their patients. The medical norm has been set to a high standard, and rightly so. I think that every career option requires a sense of morality but because medical practitioners have greater responsibility than most other careers, their sense of morality is more frequently challenged, and thus heightened. Doctors are responsible for preserving and maintaining life-- the foundation of morality itself--and they deal with these life and death situations on a regular basis. In doing so, I believe that doctors acquire a higher sense of morality since their career challenges it so often. In essence, they are forced to define and live by a moral conduct consistently. On the other hand, it is unfair to say that Dr. Smith is “more moral” than your average Joe because Dr. Smith is faced with more moral decisions at his workplace. Joe might be a law-abiding citizen who out of his own will, also helps the less fortunate at a shelter by donating clothes and food. In this sense aren’t they both then preserving life? And both being equally moral?TChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17830024282780327327noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-90937109500856330992010-09-13T20:31:33.838-07:002010-09-13T20:31:33.838-07:00The moral standards that are applied to medical pr...The moral standards that are applied to medical practitioners should be higher than those applied to other people, because medical practitioners spend about a decade obtaining a degree/license to practice medicine (taking care of the lives of others). Having that title is a very respectful one, where people entrust their lives in your hands. Doctors are looked as one of the highest professions. <br />Either saving lives in a trauma room or a physical examination in your primary care physician’s office, carries a monumental responsibility that should be taken very importantly. When doctors and patients interact, it is the doctor’s priority to do all he/she can to sustain or rescue that person, who is in a very vulnerable state and needs the care and knowledge of someone qualified such as. <br />Doctors must behave a step higher than other people, for example in the article, it was very unprofessional-like to start a verbal argument and allow it to escalate to a physical altercation during a women’s labor and operation. Not only were they unprofessional but they were also dealing with a not so easy birth; the husband said there had been no previous complications, but further complications probably could have been derailed if the altercation did not occur. They put the patient’s life in danger. I don’t think it is unrealistic for these higher moral standards to be implemented; doctors already take the Hippocratic Oath (promising to practice medicine ethically), it wouldn’t hurt to add even more higher moral values and standards. But just like everything, humans are not perfect, but that’s not to say it isn’t worth it or unrealistic to establish.mariahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17806398116434015832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-9974961564326653072010-09-13T20:21:39.328-07:002010-09-13T20:21:39.328-07:00Since we live in country that holds high the idea ...Since we live in country that holds high the idea of equality (for all men and women are created equal), it may be tempting to assert that the same moral standards ought to be uniformly applied across persons, regardless of one’s profession or creed. As Americans, we find the idea of equality both attractive and appealing. However, if one were to poll this class for instance on the question of applying equal moral standards across board, it’s almost certain that the majority would not want their doctor and, say, their plumber held to the same moral standards. And the reason is simple: doctors wield a tremendous power, the power over life and death, and so society holds them to a higher standard. It is often said that “with great power comes great responsibility,” and this could not be any more true than when applied to physicians. In our society, few professions enjoy the high esteem and special status that is accorded to medicine. Society gives doctors this high regard precisely because we expect “more” from them. We expect them to conduct themselves with great poise and unswerving moral integrity. The behavior of those two physicians mentioned in the article, while not the norm, serves as a reminder of the conduct we do not want in our doctors.Jill Grodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07014700946139304253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-87135195973868140322010-09-13T20:19:40.020-07:002010-09-13T20:19:40.020-07:00With all professions comes the responsibility to u...With all professions comes the responsibility to uphold basic moral standards, although it is important to point out that some professions require a higher standard of conscientiousness than others. Practitioners are responsible to put their best effort towards ensuring the well being of each and every one of their patients. Whether or not practitioners should conform to a higher moral standard than other people is very questionable to me. How do we judge what that higher moral standard is? In my opinion, what is really in question here is the standard of professionalism that should be exemplified by a practitioner. Patients put all their trust in their doctor, especially in life or death situations. Under no circumstances should the well being of a patient be jeopardized due to an altercation between coworkers. With great responsibility should come the ability to prioritize correctly. In this particular case, the safe birth of a baby should have been top priority.<br /><br />-Maria Mannarammannarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06255142053089098027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-66955238982995834002010-09-13T20:12:56.497-07:002010-09-13T20:12:56.497-07:00There is no dispute that the physicians mentioned ...There is no dispute that the physicians mentioned in the article acted unprofessionally. In ANY profession, an argument ending with fists should be severely reprimanded. Doctors, of all professions, should leave their private life private, and disputes should be handled away from patients. If it can be proved that their actions harmed the child, then their actions would be immoral because they violated the very promise they gave to become doctors: Do no harm. If the child had unforeseen complications that were not caused by the irresponsibilities of the doctors, then they are not (completely) at fault and acted as any severely agitated humans would and argued, though the article was severely lacking in the details surrounding the argument. The fact that they are doctors does not exclude them from normal human emotions and lapses of judgement. Expecting such physicians to have a poker face when angry enough to punch a window is extremely unrealistic, though many people DO hold them to such a lofty standard because of the medical training and stigma attached to the title. It's important to realize that doctors are people too.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05276450634615287568noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-81171489802512188612010-09-13T19:59:46.931-07:002010-09-13T19:59:46.931-07:00Our society puts medical practitioners on a high p...Our society puts medical practitioners on a high pedestal and with good reason. Any job that involves saving or protecting an individual's wellbeing should have higher moral standards compared to other professions. In this case, the behavior of the two doctors is highly unacceptable and unethical within their field. It is difficult to know if the baby had problems before or if the dispute led to complications. Medical professionals agree to partake in this field and as part of it they agree to provide the best health services and protect our wellbeing no matter what circumstances or problems they have. Health is critical to all of us and based on the doctor’s recommendations and/or procedures, a patients life can be endangered. When patients seek help, they expect knowledgeable, committed, trained and caring individuals. It is their duty to provide a safe environment for all patients. Hence, I believe that the moral standards we apply to medical practitioners have and should be higher. As ordinary individuals outside of their professional responsibilities, they follow our universal and societal moral standards but within the profession these standards ought to be higher.G.Sepulvedahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09105077870560478757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-4676667926233476242010-09-13T19:57:27.221-07:002010-09-13T19:57:27.221-07:00In addition to multiple years of schooling, a phys...In addition to multiple years of schooling, a physician must be prepared to deal with inevitable ethical issues. Practicing medicine can be a glamorized profession characterized by high income, prestige, and honor. Such high rewards come with crucial responsibilities that test the human nature of physicians each day. In light of this, I believe that moral and ethical standards are, and should be, held much higher for medical practitioners. Patients entrust their lives in doctors and depend on their expertise, professionalism, and their medical decisions. In this article, a woman trusts the doctors with her and her newborn son’s lives. The two doctors have ultimately broken their vow to “do no harm” by diverting their attention from the patients’ life-threatening situation. In no other profession do we find people who hold such delicate and important responsibilities for human life. Therefore, it is essential for doctors to maintain boundaries and ethical standards when caring for the health and safety of patients.Alexandra Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15217191447888704773noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-24101537874646881152010-09-13T19:32:51.178-07:002010-09-13T19:32:51.178-07:00I think that discussion has created a confusion be...I think that discussion has created a confusion between two separate matters, professionalism and moral standards. Although it seems that the doctors in this articles behaved immorally, I'd argue that more details must be divulged before arguing this effectively. Assuming these details show that had the fight been avoided, the baby would be damage free and the mother scar free. If this is the case, then sure we may say the doctors ignored the moral standards that are implicit with their profession. However, equally likely is the case that these birth defects and hysterectomy were inevitable, as the doctor wishes to argue, and maybe the argument was over some controversial delivery method that one doctor disagreed with. We are not in a position to say that the fight, over this delivery method, forced the delivery to occur conventionally and saved the babies life. Then I'd be forced to argue the doctor should be judged as acting in accordance with moral standards by saving a life, albeit incurring some damages along the way. The lack of detail in the article really only allows one judgement, that is to say that regardless of other details the doctors acting unprofessionally. With the discussion of professionalism, related but inherently separate from morality, I think we should be careful not to allow the two terms to become synonymous. <br />As for holding doctors to higher moral standards, I believe the same universal moral standard should apply to physicians as we hold ourselves to. I do not believe it is fair to expect greater morals to be upheld by physicians because they are only human as well. However, their profession require the continuous adherence to these standards and the effects of their deviation from them are more profound, but the standards are the same.Aaron Yengo-Kahnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17030894450618932958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-25385135714142550752010-09-13T18:58:14.697-07:002010-09-13T18:58:14.697-07:00To become a doctor, one must take the Hippocratic ...To become a doctor, one must take the Hippocratic Oath which, among other things, requires that they aim to help the sick and not harm them. In doing so, medical practitioners commit themselves to being more ethical and moral people than people who are not doctors. This is part of their job description that they willingly agreed to. The term moral standards is not very clear for most people, so asking medical practitioners to go above and beyond something that is hard to define seems unrealistic. However, doctors should uphold the Hippocratic Oath because it has specific parameters and was knowingly taken on by the doctors. Their job entails very serious and sometimes life-threatening matters and just by this nature of the work doctors tend to be perceived as all-knowing and powerful. People expect medical practitioners to tell the truth and do what is in their patients’ best interest. This seems to fall into the category of a doctor’s job description. Yet often times what is the truth and what is in the patient’s best interest is not clear. In these instances, doctors must use their best educated guess. Medical practitioners are people and can only be expected to do their best. Yes, they have a special skill, but this does not require them to be under a higher moral standard. Performing their job to the best of their abilities just may happen to put them in a higher moral category than other professionals.Juliana Reinoldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10640454063394530923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-58935125170016879302010-09-13T18:40:21.825-07:002010-09-13T18:40:21.825-07:00Doctors should absolutely be held to higher moral ...Doctors should absolutely be held to higher moral standards. Their job is to care for their patient to the best of their ability, so I see no reason why they shouldn't be held to high moral standards. I think that standard applies to other professions as well, but doctor's especially as they are responsible for another human being. Obviously doctors are human and they make mistakes and it is unrealistic to assume that a higher moral standard means they are impervious to them. However, doctors are supposed to do what is best for the patient and I believe a high moral standard is an important part of that. I also agree with several people who have pointed out that in the case with the fighting doctors professionalism is more in question than the moral standard. I would be appalled if my doctors started fighting in front of me. I think that in this case a low level of professional behavior led to neglect of their patient, rather than a low moral standard.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13612246386592904495noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-18551326706181289162010-09-13T18:16:04.564-07:002010-09-13T18:16:04.564-07:00The fact that the Doctor was on shift and working ...The fact that the Doctor was on shift and working should have been reason enough for him to not only want to be held to a higher moral standard, but that we as trusting patients should be able to expect only the best care and undivided attention from our chosen doctor. It is not an unrealistic expectation that physicians should be held to higher moral standards than we apply to other people, because we trust them and their obligation to treat each patient to the best of their abilities and we even give them permission to take our problems and sometimes lives into their hands to do with as they see fit. We as people have an undivided trust in our physician to put their own biases aside and fulfill their moral obligation to do what is best for their patient. In the case of the brawling doctors, clearly neither of them had the patients best interests in mind, and at a time of such high stress for the woman in labor they not only added stress to the situation but they put two lives in danger because of their selfishness and their inability to separate work from their own feelings. I understand that no human is flawless, but as with any working professional, if we do not expect them to perform at the highest moral standard possible than how would any job get done right by any working professional?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09780033794814353813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224191585523605400.post-69606817900937182142010-09-13T18:14:59.574-07:002010-09-13T18:14:59.574-07:00Becoming a doctor requires more than the long path...Becoming a doctor requires more than the long path of required education, it requires taking full responsiblities for someone else's life; much more than other job titles entail. Because of the amount of time it takes to complete medical school and become a credible dr., we automatically gain moral responsibility. However, there have been many mistakes made by doctors and although their education gains my respect, I will always have a hesitation when a doctor recommends a serious surgery. Much of the medical system has become a business, giving doctors alternative reasons to perform extraneous surgeries that could contribute to a lifethreatening mistake. <br /><br />All human beings should be heald to the same moral standard regardless of education levels. The main point is that doctors are also human beings who are working to make a living for their families. Humans make mistakes and it seems very unrealistic to automatically trust, in some situations, total strangers with the moral integrity to make decisions in lives that aren't theirs. I do give doctors respect and credit for the hours they put into learning and studying the human body, but I just think we, as patients, should be a little more cautious when automatically taking advice from a "stranger".Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10725164052772898107noreply@blogger.com