Day 3 - 15 -- Greyer Issues

The work day began with a guest speaker in seminar. The turnout was lower than expected -- could have been that it is Friday or could be the colder temperatures this morning. It is never clear. The topic dealt with research ethics -- what must be done, how and why. Most of the room had heard the message before, but hearing it from someone new can't hurt. It gave a number of things to ponder.

Ethical concepts in health care practice go beyond those of research. Rights, responsibilities and consequences are clearly stated in codes of ethics developed for each profession and for each institution. Each person also has their own internal code, even if they haven't articulated this -- it is based on personal philosophy or approach to life and policy or set of rules governing behaviour. It seems at times that the personal does not mesh with the larger ethical principles. People share confidential information over coffee or on social media, petty theft occurs whether it is shoplifting, taking office supplies home or not adding payment to the local coffee fund. Such actions seem so common and expected, is it any wonder that one might encounter plagiarism in all document types or data manipulation in studies?  Understanding motivations isn't easy since these may be as varied as the infractions encountered -- greed, power, entitlement, thrills or fun. We see things in the news ranging from small to large infractions, but all just as ethically wrong. The speaker today got me thinking of these broader situations. It often isn't  black and white, but rather concepts that are firmly lodged in that grey zone in which we all live. Just something to make you say Hmmm <smile>

The song choice for today covers the personally held ethical concepts. The lyrics can be read here. They may not be fully understandable in the song -- a bit overproduced for my taste, but still interesting musically. Enjoy!

Code of Ethics -- Manhattan Transfer