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Organization Ethics in Healthcare

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2000

Patricia H. Werhane
Affiliation:
Patricia H. Werhane, Ph.D., is the Ruffin Professor of Business Ethics and Senior Fellow at the Olsson Center for Applied Ethics at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia
Mary V. Rorty
Affiliation:
Mary V. Rorty, Ph.D., has a doctorate in philosophy from Johns Hopkins University and an M.A. in clinical ethics from the University of Virginia. She has served as Director of Advanced Studies at the Center for Biomedical Ethics and is a Senior Fellow at the Olsson Center for Applied Ethics, University of Virginia
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Abstract

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Bioethics, clinical ethics, and professional ethics are mature, well-developed fields of applied ethics that focus on medical research, patient autonomy and patient care, patient–healthcare professional relationships, and issues that arise in clinical and other medical settings. However, despite these developments, little attention has been paid to the organizational aspects of healthcare in these fields. This is surprising, because in the last 30 years healthcare has become more and more institutionalized in provider, management, and insurer organizations. Despite JCAHO's preoccupation with organizational ethics during the last decade, the philosophical underpinnings of their requirements have been less explored in the literature. Clinical ethics remains preoccupied with clinical patient care and professional ethics with individual professional guidelines; even the American College of Healthcare Executives focuses primarily on healthcare managers, not on healthcare organizations.

Type
Editorial
Copyright
© 2000 Cambridge University Press