Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- Section I Information problems
- Section II End of life care
- Section III Pregnant women and children
- Section IV Genetics and biotechnology
- Section V Research ethics
- Section VI Health systems and institutions
- Introduction
- 32 Organizational ethics
- 33 Priority setting
- 34 Disclosure of medical error
- 35 Conflict of interest in education and patient care
- 36 Public health ethics
- 37 Emergency and disaster scenarios
- 38 Rural healthcare ethics
- 39 Community healthcare ethics
- Section VII Using clinical ethics to make an impact in healthcare
- Section VIII Global health ethics
- Section IX Religious and cultural perspectives in bioethics
- Section X Specialty bioethics
- Index
- References
39 - Community healthcare ethics
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 30 October 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- Section I Information problems
- Section II End of life care
- Section III Pregnant women and children
- Section IV Genetics and biotechnology
- Section V Research ethics
- Section VI Health systems and institutions
- Introduction
- 32 Organizational ethics
- 33 Priority setting
- 34 Disclosure of medical error
- 35 Conflict of interest in education and patient care
- 36 Public health ethics
- 37 Emergency and disaster scenarios
- 38 Rural healthcare ethics
- 39 Community healthcare ethics
- Section VII Using clinical ethics to make an impact in healthcare
- Section VIII Global health ethics
- Section IX Religious and cultural perspectives in bioethics
- Section X Specialty bioethics
- Index
- References
Summary
Staff in a community care agency provide service to an elderly, but capable, woman in her home. This woman is cared for by her son, who the staff believes is neglectful. The home care staff believes that the neglectful son is not providing adequate support to his mother while at the same time enjoying many financial benefits (e.g., rent and food) in this living arrangement. Further, the pair lives in a “rough” area of the city and staff has witnessed the son both purchasing from, and having loud arguments with, local drug dealers. The staff are concerned about their own and their client's safety and feel distress in relation to the situation each time after they visit the home; yet within their organization there exists no tools for them to discuss or work through the ethical issues faced in this situation.
What is community healthcare ethics?
Community healthcare ethics can be defined as an endeavor to promote the sector's philosophy of supporting clients' independence and ongoing integration (or reintegration) in their community. It does so by providing a unique view that is sensitive to how client's self-determination may be affected by the distinct supports offered by the sector, and the different settings they are provided in.
Such a definition is not unproblematic, as community healthcare ethics is ill defined: it lacks the rich literature, dedicated educational programs and professional roles, codes, and policies that treat ethical issues in institutional clinical practice.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Textbook of Bioethics , pp. 299 - 306Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008
References
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