Vulnerability, Moral responsibility, and Moral Obligations: the case of Industrial Action in the Medical and Allied Professions

Abstract

The article addresses issues at the nexus of physician industrial action, moral agency, and responsibility. There are situations in which we find ourselves best placed to offer aid to those who may be in vulnerable positions, a behavior that is consistent with our everyday moral intuitions. In both our interpersonal relationships and social life, we make frequent judgments about whether to praise or blame someone for their actions when we determine that they should have acted to help a vulnerable person. While the average person is unlikely to confront these kinds of situations often, those in the medical professions, physicians especially, may confront these and similar situations regularly. Therefore, when physicians withhold their services for whatever reason in support of industrial action, it raises issues of moral responsibility to patients who may be in a vulnerable position. Using theories of moral responsibility, vulnerability, and ethics, this paper explores the moral implications of physician industrial action. We explore issues of vulnerability of patients, as well as the moral responsibility and moral agency of doctors to patients. Determining when a person is vulnerable, and when an individual becomes a moral agent, worthy of praise or blame for an act or non-action, is at the core of the framework. Notwithstanding the right of physicians to act in their self-interest, we argue that vulnerability leads to moral obligations, that physicians are moral agents, and the imperatives of their obligations to patients clear, even if limited by certain conditions. We suggest that both doctors and governments have a collective responsibility to prevent harm to patients and present the theoretical and practical implications of the paper.

How Do Professionals Regard Vulnerable People in a Portuguese Community Setting? A Qualitative Content Analysis

“…Individuals possess a variety of skills; therefore, labeling them as vulnerable might be inaccurate in terms of determining priorities and policies. This imposes an ethical duty to develop fair and equitable healthcare systems that encourage autonomy; stimulate involvement; increase cultural safety; and support the well-being of everyone, rather than relieving us of our responsibility to address vulnerability (Adobor 2022). To meet the needs of vulnerable people, governments should invest in the community health and social sectors, focusing on health literacy approaches to address the needs of the more vulnerable and provide the resources they require (Richard et al 2016).…”

Islamic Religious Education in Student Character Development

“…Students today seem to experience a lack of character. This lack of character results in the decline of students' morals (Adobor, 2022). For this reason, character development is needed to develop excellence in students.…”