Introduction
Health care professionals work in a complex environment that requires careful consideration with regard to the interplay of factors that influence its various dynamics (Spencer & Mills 100). The ethical standards of health care professionals are higher compared to those of employees in other industries. Health care professionals have an ethical responsibility to ensure that they uphold good morals by making principled decisions.
Leadership in the health care industry is very important in terms of ensuring the promotion of ethical practices, good patient experiences, and an inclusive decision-making process (Gunderman 60). Different leadership styles suit the dynamic nature of the health care industry, thus the need to have a clear description of the moral compass for various professionals (Hall 22). Leadership development helps to influence ethical conduct among health care professionals.
Effective provision of health care services requires individuals who understand the challenges associated with patients from different cultural backgrounds (Stanford & Connor 112). Culturally competent health care practices help to improve patient experiences. In addition, such health care practices help in injecting efficiency in crucial organizational elements such as change management and the decision-making process (Gunderman 66).
The effectiveness of these elements depends on the ability of leaders to promote ethical practices. Health care professionals have an ethical responsibility to influence positive transformation using complexity, positive psychology, and patient centered care (Pozgar 300).
The concept of morality among health care professionals
Research has established that motivation based on ideas of doing right and avoiding the wrong is held in high regard among health care professionals. The ethical motive of professionals working in the industry is very important in terms of their values, as well as the moral implication of their decisions (Hall 31). There are numerous conditions and consequences that characterize the concept of morality among health care professionals. One of the common conditions is moral distress.
This refers to a state of adversity and psychological suffering experienced by health care professionals, thus limiting their ability to act in an ethical manner (Stanford & Connor 118). Experts argue that moral distress can lead to low productivity by employees and a lack of consistency in the level of success achieved by health care organizations. Some of the conditions that predispose health care workers to moral distress include unattainable goals, poor working conditions, poor definition of responsibilities, and misappropriation of resources (Pozgar 308).
Leadership experts argue that promoting ethical practices in an organization starts with the leaders, who should act as role models. However, poor leadership characterized by misinformed goals, priorities, and decisions often has negative impacts on the ability of employees to uphold ethical practices (Boyle & Guinn 11). There is an urgent need for capacity building among leaders in health care organizations with regard to promotion of ethical practices.
The ethical standards of health care professionals are very high, thus it is important to have leaders with a good understanding of their ethical responsibilities. Leaders in the health care industry deal with numerous challenges relating to allocation of resources, especially during emergency situations (Hall 40). Research has established that the moral distress suffered by health care professionals often develops out of their desire to meet their responsibilities without compromising the ability to remain ethical. It is immoral for leaders in health care facilities to compromise the values of the employees by providing them with limited resources and assigning duties compromise their integrity (Hall 43).
Lack of motivation is one of the main factors that lead to moral distress among health care professionals. This often leads to negative impacts such as high employee turnover because the level of job satisfaction among the health care workers reduces a lot (Spencer & Mills 111). In certain cases, some health care professionals often leave their jobs permanently and choose to venture into different fields. Health care professionals have an ethical responsibility to provide the best quality care to patients regardless of their impending circumstances (Stanford & Connor 125).
The moral compass of a leader in the health care profession
Over the years, the role of leaders in the health care industry has changed a lot. Leadership in the contemporary health care setting focuses a lot on the importance of promoting ethical practices (Gunderman 72). The moral scope of health care leaders is very wide because their decisions are very crucial in terms of their impacts on patient experiences, the cost of treatment, and level of influence from the government (Spencer & Mills 124).
Leaders should understand the effects of their conduct and decisions. This helps them in coming up with appropriate measures of maintaining high standards of morality as they work to provide the best possible care to patients. Research has established that leaders in the health care industry should have a certain level of moral courage in order to deal effectively with the complex ethical dilemmas associated with providing care to patients (Spencer & Mills 129).
Moral courage helps leaders in addressing the challenge of doing the right things, especially in situations where upholding moral principles is a huge challenge. Every leader faces various forms of ethical dilemmas that require careful consideration with regard to the best strategies for addressing them (Stanford & Connor 131). Common dilemmas such as lack of enough physicians, limited resources, and insubordination often affect the ability of leaders in health care settings to maintain high moral standards because of the intensity of their responsibilities (Boyle & Guinn 15).
Research has established that the nature of decisions made by leaders affects the ability of organizations to uphold ethical standards. Leaders in the health care industry have an ethical responsibility to ensure that have good comprehension of various ethical principles that guide the decision-making process (Spencer & Mills 136).
The ethical compass in the health care industry entails the ability of leaders to understand the evolving basis for moral reasoning. Leaders in a health care setting should understand the dynamic nature of the health care environment with regard to the various factors that influence their moral courage (Pozgar 329). It is important to note that health care professionals have crucial ethical obligations towards patients of ensuring that the privacy of their medical information is always observed. Research has established that the privacy of patient information is one of the main issues that create most of the ethical dilemmas faced by health care leaders (Boyle & Guinn 20).
For example, in the United States, there are various laws developed by the government to protect the right of patients and their physician to have the ownership of medical information.
Under the guiding principles of the medical practice, it is unethical for health care professionals to share the medical information of a patient with a third party without their consent (Boyle & Guinn 23). Health care leaders should have the moral courage to make tough decisions, especially those relating to patient outcomes. They should avoid the fear of negative consequences such as a dented reputation, isolation, insubordination, and shame associated with making decisions that might anger some people (Gunderman 83). Maintaining high standards of morality is a very challenging task for health care leaders, thus the need to engage them in development programs in order to broaden their thinking power (Pozgar 341).
Conclusion
Effective leadership is one of the factors that influence prolonged success and ethical decision-making in health care organizations. It is important for professionals working in the health care industry to enroll in various leadership development programs because they help to enhance their level of self awareness and the ability to achieve moral courage. The ethical standards of health care professionals are higher compared to those of workers in other industries.
The ability of health care workers to adapt and promote ethical practices within the workplace plays a crucial role in achieving good patient outcomes and injecting efficiency in the decision-making process. This program has helped me to mature as a leader and become a more ethical decision-maker. In the next five years, I hope to hold a leadership position in a well established health care institution. Through the course of the program, I learned that an ethical leader in the health care industry should have a high level of emotional intelligence, moral courage, and cultural competency. All these elements play a crucial role in influencing the desired patient outcomes through the provision of high quality care.
Works Cited
Boyle, Philip, & Guinn, David. Organizational Ethics in Health Care: Principles, Cases, and Practical Solutions. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2004. Print.
Gunderman, Richard. Leadership in Healthcare. California: Springer Science & Business Media, 2009. Print.
Hall, Robert. An Introduction to Healthcare Organizational Ethics. Michigan: Oxford University Press, 2000. Print.
Pozgar, George. Legal and Ethical Issues for Health Professionals. New York: Jones & Bartlett Publishers, 2012. Print.
Spencer, Edward, & Mills, Ann. Organization Ethics in Health Care. Michigan: Oxford University Press, 2004. Print.
Stanford, Carla, & Connor, Valerie. Ethics for Health Professionals. New York: Jones & Bartlett publishers, 2014. Print.