- Published: December 28, 2021
- Updated: December 28, 2021
- University / College: Michigan State University
- Level: College Admission
- Language: English
- Downloads: 25
The paper ” Morality and Ethical Principles in Alternative Interventions” is an outstanding example of an essay on health sciences and medicine. According to the NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms (2018), alternative interventions in medicine refer to all the other treatment approaches used rather than the standard treatments prescribed in the traditional medical curricula. As defined by Adams (2014), alternative interventions are medical practices and treatment plans that are outside mainstream medicine. The application of alternative interventions in medicine is within the discretion of the health care providers and requires keen consideration before administration of any alternative treatment. The physicians administering the alternative interventions are bound by the oath not to harm patients and to provide the most efficacious therapies during treatment. The are some regulatory agencies that monitor the administration of alternative interventions by the physicians to ensure that the decisions made do not harm the patients. This paper, however, observes instances where there are no regulatory agencies and determines how morality and ethical practices can guide physicians’ decisions on the use of alternative interventions. The physicians dealing with patients in a situation where there are no regulatory agencies regarding the use of alternative interventions have a moral obligation to ensure the patients make the right choices. The physicians have experience regarding treatment and should not discredit the patients’ choices regarding alternative treatment options. The physicians should set aside personal preferences and opinions regarding alternative treatment plans and enlighten the patients on all possible treatment options (Jacobson & Cain, 2009). The physicians should engage in open two-way communication with patients without holding back information based on personal opinions to create free, non-judgmental, trustworthy relationships that ensure the patients learn of the bad treatment options and distinguish the reputable alternative treatment options from harmful/unsuitable ones (Ernst, 2018). The physicians dealing with patients in a situation where there are no regulatory agencies regarding the use of alternative interventions are morally and ethically obligated to avail all information to get informed consent from the patients. According to Adams (2014), the patients have the preconceived notion that any alternative intervention plan that involves herbs and natural ingredients, is safe. It is the moral responsibility of the physicians to provide the relevant information regarding all the alternative medicine options to guide the patients in making informed consent decisions. Most of the alternative treatment plans do not have efficacy data and evidence of facilitating treatment (Adams, 2014). The physicians are morally and ethically obligated to include the unavailability of data/evidence to back up the efficacy of alternative medicine to ensure the patients know what they are consenting. The physicians should, therefore, include information on the lack of quantifiable data on the efficacy of alternative treatment options in the consent documents to ensure the patients do not blindly consent to any alternative medicine plan (Adams, 2014). The administration of holistic health involves the integration of standard treatment and alternative treatment approaches to alleviate patients’ pain and provide a cure. The administration of alternative medicine is not fully regulated and in the instances of no regulatory agencies, the physicians and guided by moral and ethical principles. The physicians administering alternative treatment are ethically obligated to set aside personal opinions and provide objective options during open exchanges with patients, to avail all alternative treatment information, and avoid unduly guiding of patients in making informed consent decisions.