PHTY102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Sexual Misconduct, Gillick Competence, Health Care Complaints Commission
PHTY week 4 LB ethics in Physiotherapy and the Code of Conduct
What is ethics?
- Moral principles that govern a person’s behaviour or the conduct of an activity
- Rules that relate to values, trying to make a judgement between right and wrong
- Usually developed over time – influenced by family, culture, society
- Majority of ethical decisions in society revolve around money, religion, sexual issues,
health
Healthcare ethics
- Ethics which are specific to the healthcare setting
- Focus on the patient/client and their interaction with healthcare professionals and
their ‘medical’ experience
Why do we need to study ethics as physiotherapists?
- We are autonomous health care (or primary) practitioners
- We act as patient advocates
- We have an ability to make and justify our ethical decisions
- We are accountable and responsible for our behaviour
Ethics
- Ethics underpin professional conduct and physiotherapy practice
oClients have the right to privacy
oClients have the right to confidentiality
oClients have the right to choose and also to refuse treatment
- Ethical obligations are to the profession, the client, the workplace and to society in
general
Ethical principles
4 pillars:
1. Justice fairness of treatment, equal distribution of resources to all people (no
discrimination)
2. Beneficence promote interests and well-being of others
3. Non-maleficence ‘first do no harm’ (Hippocratic Oath) reducing possible
injury to our patient
4. Autonomy patient self-determination, patient has the right to choose/refuse
treatment
Other recent pillars:
- Dignity the patient (and the person treating the patient) have the right to be
treated with dignity
- Truthfulness and honesty informed consent
Professional Ethics
- Expected behaviour within the profession dress code, language, physical behaviour
- Upholding the profession speaking well of profession and colleagues
- Community expectations ‘moral’ behaviours
- Making an ethical decision is not a matter of personal choice impartiality
- Knowing patient’s wishes eg. End of life decisions
- Ethical dilemmas acting on one moral conviction may mean breaking another
Therapeutic relationships
- Physiotherapist: patient relationship is not one of equality differs from a friendship
- Patients seek the advice of the physiotherapist and acknowledge a power differential
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Phty week 4 lb ethics in physiotherapy and the code of conduct. Rules that relate to values, trying to make a judgement between right and wrong. Moral principles that govern a person"s behaviour or the conduct of an activity. Usually developed over time influenced by family, culture, society. Majority of ethical decisions in society revolve around money, religion, sexual issues, health. Ethics which are specific to the healthcare setting. Focus on the patient/client and their interaction with healthcare professionals and their medical" experience. We are autonomous health care (or primary) practitioners. We have an ability to make and justify our ethical decisions. We are accountable and responsible for our behaviour. Ethics underpin professional conduct and physiotherapy practice: clients have the right to privacy, clients have the right to confidentiality, clients have the right to choose and also to refuse treatment. Ethical obligations are to the profession, the client, the workplace and to society in general.
