Introduction
The main principles of bioethics in the United States are beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice. According to the concept of beneficence, a medical professional has a duty to act in the patient’s best interest rather than their own. This idea asks to weigh the advantages of obtaining therapies against their potential costs and hazards (Devettere, 2016, p. 14). In the non-maleficence, the patient should not suffer any damage. According to the non-maleficence principle, any activity that could in any way hurt a patient must be avoided at all costs. Additionally, this concept argues that the damage should not be excessive compared to the treatment’s benefits because “many therapies include some degree of pain” (Devettere, 2016, p. 18). These two principles might best represent patients’ interests, while the other two serve the healthcare workers more than patients.
Discussion
The patient’s liberty implies that each patient has the right to accept or refuse therapy. This concept mandates that a healthcare provider perceive the patients’ beliefs and judgments regarding certain treatments (Devettere, 2016, p.19). Justice entails allocating limited medical resources by deciding who receives what sort of care, when, and in what manner. When a patient is unable to make an educated choice on their treatment, this principle applies. The idea permits surrogates to be discovered acting in the patient’s place, in which case justice must be applied to find the appropriate individual (Devettere, 2016, p. 90).
Which of the bioethics principles listed above should be given precedence may not be clear and is still up for discussion and interpretation. In my position, though, I would first take into account the non-maleficence principle, which indicates that there ought to be no damage done to the patient, or at the very least, only to a minimal extent that is not excessive compared to the advantages of the therapy. Anyone seeking treatment frequently prioritizes getting better through better care which hence increases the weight of this principle relative to the other three.
Conclusion
Christian worldview shapes the background of each person in accordance with Jesus’s teachings and hence affects the order of bioethics principles for every specialist. Since Christianity values human life, the most, because it is God’s best creation, it is essential to let humans have their full rights, liberty, or in other words autonomy (Meilaender, 2020, p. 15). The next principle is beneficence because every medical worker has to serve society selflessly (Van der Merwe, 2020, p. 1). Other principles of bioethics in the Christian worldview would be ranked in order of justice and then non-maleficence.
References
Devettere, R. (2016). Practical Decision Making in Health Care Ethics (4th ed.). Georgetown University Press. Web.
Van der Merwe, D. G. (2020). The Christian spirituality of the love of god: Conceptual and experiential perspectives emanating from the gospel of John. Verbum Et Ecclesia, 41(1). Web.
Meilaender, G. (2020). Bioethics: A primer for Christians. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.