Develop a solution to a specific ethical dilemma [To Vaccinate, or Not] faced by a health care
professional by applying ethical principles. Describe the issues and a
possible solution in a 3-5 page paper.
Whether you are a nurse, a public health professional, a health care
administrator, or in another role in the health care field, you must
base your decisions on a set of ethical principles and values. Your
decisions must be fair, equitable, and defensible.
For this assessment, develop a solution to a specific ethical dilemma faced by a health care professional. In your assessment:
- Access the Ethical Case Studies media piece to review the case studies you will be using for this assessment.
- Select the case most closely related to your area of interest and use it to complete the assessment.
- Note: The case study
may not supply all of the information you need. In such cases, you
should consider a variety of possibilities and infer potential
conclusions. However, please be sure to identify any assumptions or
speculations you make.
- Note: The case study
- Include the selected case study in your reference list, using proper APA style and format. Refer to the Evidence and APA section of the Writing Center for guidance.
- Select the case most closely related to your area of interest and use it to complete the assessment.
- Summarize the facts in a case study and use the three
components of an ethical decision-making model to analyze an ethical
problem or issue and the factors that contributed to it.- Identify which case study you selected and
briefly summarize the facts surrounding it. Identify the problem or
issue that presents an ethical dilemma or challenge and describe that
dilemma or challenge. - Identify who is involved or affected by the ethical problem or issue.
- Access the Ethical Decision-Making Model
media piece and use the three components of the ethical decision-making
model (moral awareness, moral judgment, and ethical behavior) to
analyze the ethical issues.- Apply the three components outlined in the Ethical Decision-Making Model media.
- Analyze the factors that contributed to the ethical problem or issue identified in the case study.
- Describe the factors that contributed to the problem or issue and explain how they contributed.
- Identify which case study you selected and
- Apply academic peer-reviewed journal articles relevant
to an ethical problem or issue as evidence to support an analysis of the
case.- In addition to the readings provided, use the
Capella library to locate at least one academic peer-reviewed journal
article relevant to the problem or issue that you can use to support
your analysis of the situation. The NHS-FPX4000: Developing a Health Care Perspective Library Guide will help you locate appropriate references.- Cite and apply key principles from the
journal article as evidence to support your critical thinking and
analysis of the ethical problem or issue. - Review the Think Critically About Source Quality resource.
- Assess the credibility of the information source.
- Assess the relevance of the information source.
- Cite and apply key principles from the
- In addition to the readings provided, use the
- Discuss the effectiveness of the communication approaches present in a case study.
- Describe how the health care professional in the case study communicated with others.
- Assess instances where the professional communicated effectively or ineffectively.
- Explain which communication approaches should be used and which ones should be avoided.
- Describe the consequences of using effective and non-effective communication approaches.
- Discuss the effectiveness of the approach used by a
professional to deal with problems or issues involving ethical practice
in a case study.- Describe the actions taken in response to the ethical dilemma or issue presented in the case study.
- Summarize how well the professional managed
professional responsibilities and priorities to resolve the problem or
issue in the case. - Discuss the key lessons this case provides for health care professionals.
- Apply ethical principles to a possible solution to an ethical problem or issue described in a case study.
- Describe the proposed solution.
- Discuss how the approach makes this professional
more effective or less effective in building relationships across
disciplines within his or her organization. - Discuss how likely it is the proposed solution will foster professional collaboration.
- Write clearly and logically, with correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.
- Apply the principles of effective composition.
- Determine the proper application of the rules of grammar and mechanics.
- Write using APA style for in-text citations, quotes, and references.
- Determine the proper application of APA formatting requirements and scholarly writing standards.
- Integrate information from outside sources into
academic writing by appropriately quoting, paraphrasing, and
summarizing, following APA style.
Your assessment should also meet the following requirements:
- Length: 3–5 typed, double-spaced pages, not including the title page and reference page.
- Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
- APA tutorial: Use the APA Style Paper Tutorial [DOCX] for guidance.
- Written communication: Use correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
- References: Integrate information from
outside sources to include at least two references (the case study and
an academic peer-reviewed journal article) and three in-text citations
within the paper. - APA format: Follow current APA
guidelines for in-text citation of outside sources in the body of your
paper and also on the reference page.
professional associations, government entities, and other organizations:
- American College of Healthcare Executives. (2019). ACHE code of ethics. https://www.ache.org/about-ache/our-story/our-commitments/ethics/ache-code-of-ethics
- American Nurses Association. (n.d.). Ethics topics and articles. https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/nursing-excellence/ethics/ethics-topics-and-articles/
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). Public health ethics resources. https://www.cdc.gov/od/science/integrity/phethics/resources.htm
- Ennis-O-Connor, M., & Mannion, R. (2020). Social media networks and leadership ethics in healthcare. Healthcare Management Forum, 33(3), 145–148.
- Levitt, D. (2014). Ethical decision-making in a caring environment: The four principles and LEADS. Healthcare Management Forum, 27(2), 105–107.
- Moradi, K., Najarkolai, A. R., & Keshmiri, F. (2016). Interprofessional teamwork education: Moving toward the patient-centered approach. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 47(10), 449–460.
- Raus, K., Mortier, E., & Eeckloo, K. (2018). The patient perspective in health care networks. BMC Medical Ethics, 19(1), 52.
- Sanders, S., Wisse, B., Van Yperen, N. W., & Rus, D. (2018). On ethically solvent leaders: The roles of pride and moral identity in predicting leader ethical behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 150(3), 631–645.
Jenna and Chris Smith are the proud parents of Ana, a 5–day–old baby
girl born without complications at Community Hospital. Since delivery,
the parents have bonded well with Ana and express their desire to raise
her as naturally as possible. For the Smiths, this means breastfeeding
exclusively for the first six months, making their own baby food using
pureed organic foods, and not allowing Ana to be vaccinated.
The Smiths are college educated and explain they have
researched vaccines and decided the potential harms caused by them far
outweigh any benefits. They point to the rise in autism rates as proof
of the unforeseen risk of vaccines. Their new pediatrician, Dr. Angela
Kerr, listens intently to the Smiths’ description of their research,
including online mommy–blogs that detail how vaccines may have caused
autism in many children. The Smiths conclude by resolutely stating
they’ve decided not to vaccinate Ana, despite the recommendations of the
medical community.
Dr. Kerr begins by stating that while vaccines have certainly
sparked controversy in recent years, she strongly recommends that Ana
become fully vaccinated. Dr. Kerr explains that vaccines have saved the
lives of millions of children worldwide and have been largely
responsible for decreases in child mortality over the past century. For
example, the decreased incidence of infection with the potentially fatal
Haemophilus influenzae type b, has resulted from routine immunization
against that bacterium. Similarly, epidemics such as the recent outbreak
of measles are usually associated with individuals who have not been
vaccinated against that pathogen.
Dr. Kerr goes on to endorse the general safety of vaccines by
informing Ana’s parents that safety profiles of vaccines are updated
regularly through data sources such as the federal government’s Vaccine
Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). The VAERS, a nationwide vaccine
safety surveillance program sponsored by the Food and Drug
Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is
accessible to the public at https://vaers.hhs.gov/index.
This system allows transparency for vaccine safety by encouraging the
public and healthcare providers to report adverse reactions to vaccines
and enables the federal government to monitor their safety. No vaccine
has been proven casual for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), or any
developmental disorder. On the contrary, many studies have shown that
vaccines containing thimerosal, an ingredient once thought to cause
autism, do not increase the risk of ASD.
Finally, Dr. Kerr reminds the Smiths that some children in
the general population have weakened immune systems because of genetic
diseases or cancer treatment, for example. It may not be medically
feasible to vaccinate such children. Other children are too young to
receive certain immunizations. Instead, these children are protected
because almost all other children (and adults) have been vaccinated and
this decreases their exposure to vaccine–preventable illnesses (VPIs).
This epidemiological concept is known as “herd immunity.” As more
parents refuse immunization for their healthy children, however, the
rate of VPIs will increase. This puts vulnerable children at significant
risk of morbidity and mortality. Routine childhood immunization
contributes significantly to the health of the general public, both by
providing a direct benefit to those who are vaccinated and by protecting
others via herd immunity. Dr. Kerr concludes by stating that after
considering the risks versus the benefits of immunization, most states
require vaccinations before children can attend school. Parents may
decide not to vaccinate under specific circumstances, however, which
vary by state.
Jenna and Chris Smith confirm their understanding of what Dr.
Kerr has explained, but restate that they do not want Ana vaccinated at
this time. Dr. Kerr is perplexed as to what to do.