Ethical Dilemma Case Study

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Potential example of an ethical issue or dilemma Shante’ Seals Vatterott Dental Assisting Courtney Oetting (A man is truly ethical only when he obeys the compulsion to help all life which he is able to Assist, and shrinks from injuring anything that lives.) Albert Schweitzer. Non Maleficence is often related to consideration in end- of- life decisions. Dentist are not often involved in actual decision making about withdrawing or withholding treatments on patients. But in some cases caring for patients may cause some situations which some type of harm will seem inevitable. Dentist are bound to choose the lesser two, although the lesser of the two can be determined by the circumstances. Dentist primary duty is to keep up to date…show more content…
The patient is exercising his or her autonomy and with not taking x-rays for so long it is a form of no maleficence. And it can harm the patient due to undetected periodontal disease, decay, pathology, and more. Dilemmas can vary depending on the type of practice, specialty, and age of patient in the practice. Informed consent is highly recommended for today’s progressive medical and dental treatment. It allows for patient autonomy, self-determination, and beneficence. Informed consent requires opening the lines of communication between (dentist and hygienist) and patients. The provider needs to always make sure that the patient understands their options. Supervised neglect does occur even in good dentist establishments. There are many conditions when patients slip through the cracks or long-term patients become so comfortable in a practice their allowed a great amount of autonomy. Which becomes a detriment to their best interest. That is when beneficence becomes a concern. There are two cases of supervised neglect, periodontal disease treated conservatively in high-risk patients, and radiographic refusal. Both can cause for disagreement between the dental hygienist and his or her employer in which an ethical dilemma will ensue. When working through ethical dilemmas you have to identify the ethical dilemma or problem, collect information, state the option, apply the ethical principal to options, make the decision, and implement the decision. When knowing the major principals of health-care ethics and how to use a model to solve an ethical conflict is the best way to solve a dilemma. Weighing all outcomes is necessary to reach a fair resolution for each party. Ethical Ethical principles guide the conduct of health care providers by helping to identify, clarify, and justify moral choices. These principles are linked to commonly expected behaviors’ because they are
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