Introduction
The relationship between a doctor and patient has been considered as a central practice in the healthcare and has become relevant in delivering high-quality care in treatment and diagnosis of diseases. Questions have been raised in biomedical ethics hence the need of understanding various medical ethics (Mappes,1981). The relationship of a doctor to patient has formed a contemporary foundation in the medical ethics. A patient needs to have full confidence in the physician and that they must feel that they must confine them. The establishment of a good rapport between the patient and the doctor is most relevant in the time of healthcare. This, therefore, makes the relationship between the two parties more important for them. The relationship is built on knowledge, respect, and trust. The patient and doctor’s perspective and values about life, disease and time available are considered to play a vital role in the establishment of a relationship.
Establishing an effective relation between the two parties allows frequent and efficient information about the condition and disease. Through offering information to the patient, they can increase the knowledge of the patient and also increase the accuracy of the diagnosis. This paper will, therefore, form a concept about the relationship between the doctor and how they are related to virtue ethics. It will also illustrate the four models that contribute to the physician-patient relationship. The doctor-patient relationship is considered important because it is vulnerable for patients that experience a high reliance on the doctor’s skills, competence, and goodwill.
Conceptualization of Physician and Patient Relationship
Conceptualization of the doctor-patient relationship includes various dimensions utilized to enhance the relationship between the two parties. These dimensions are important in creating harmony and agreement between the physician-patient relationship. This conceptualization has utilized relationship with the doctor and patient based on their cooperation and virtue ethics as a medical ethical theory.
Autonomy
Autonomy is considered as sense of self determination, based on sufficient understanding, intentional and free external and internal constraints (Mappes,1981). Historically there has been a believe that the physician knows best and that the consent of the patient is less relevant in the medical care However, it has been considered important for the doctor to ensure that the patient is fully informed about their status and asking for more directions from the patient. The patients have the choice in the provision about their healthcare and should be given a right to offer informed consent and have the freedom of external and internal constraints. Informed consent and understanding can enable improve the relationship between the physician and the patient. Informed consent, establishes a complete and satisfied relationship between the two parties hence contributes to prevention and maintenance of practitioner turnover and burnout.
Liberty limiting principles
These are considered as the reasons and justifications that limit the freedom of another person. This is a state that justifies the liberty of performing actions that may lead to harm in others (Mappes,1981). This is the idea that a patient gives their opinion in their treatment. Liberty limiting principles have been considered as the most prominent in the biomedical ethics literature. The patient is given the opportunity to choose among a variety of medical treatments according to their treatment wishes and goals. This practice is different from the doctor making their own decision about the person’s treatment goals. Having an input about the patient’s opinion in the decision-making process is vital in increasing the relationship between the physician and the patient. Shared decision is relevant to the patient because they feel that they have been heard and that they have been allowed to express their desires and major concerns. In this case, an established relationship builds trust between the physician and allows the patient to reflect their feelings and express them to the physician. This gives the doctor the chance to understand the feeling better and determine the best medical treatment for the patient.
Paternalism
This is the practice or policy on the part of people in authorization of restricting responsibilities and freedom of those subordinate (Mappes,1981). This is intended to promote their own conduct. This has reduced the relationship of the doctor and their patient. This has been an action performed with the intent ion of promoting well-being of others without others consent. This means that the physician is distributing resources and directing care to the patients. This set of practice does not honor choices or wishes of the patient.
Ethical Theory
Virtue ethics
In the attempt to answer the question on conceptualizing the relationship between the doctor and the patient, virtue ethics has offered qualities to the central notion of enhancing the relationship between the two parties. Theoretical approaches have attempted to show how virtue ethics may inform and support the relationship between the doctor and patient and how it is related to informed consent between the parties. “For our purposes, virtues may be understood as character traits that are normally valued, such as truthfulness, courage, compassion and sincerity” (Mappes, 1981). Virtue approach indicates that our character is a fundamental ethical reflection that the interest and decision of other are more important than our individual decisions. Ethical challenges have existed between the relationship between the physician and the patient due to the daily medical practices. This, therefore, has led to the need for understanding medical ethics due to the conflicting interest between the parties involved. A virtue-based approach on account of the physician-patient relationship will be a concern with the character of the physician and the health of the patient.
The virtue ethics support the ideas of informed consent, shared decision making and medical interview as a way of increasing the relationship between the two parties. To enhance the relationship between the two parties, virtue ethics is the most important ethical theory that can support medical ethics and increase the relationship between the two parties. Virtue ethics are important in providing methods of confronting, identifying and resolving professional and moral questions that have raised in clinical medicine. In the notion of virtue ethics in the relationship between the two parties, two qualities have been utilized to enhance the understanding of virtue ethics. “Ethics is morally centrally concerned with what people should do” (Mappes, 1981). These include the notions of obligation and altruism.
In this case, altruism is the idea that the physician works for the good of other’s interest. This means that the physician works to benefit others. Therefore, the fact that the physician is interested in the well-being of others, they will be able to create a connection with the patient to understand them. Therefore, they will be able to understand the best medical treatments and value the patient more. This will make the patient entrust them more in offering medical care. Ethical obligations are established at the moment the patient entrust themselves to the medical care provided by the physician. The relationship of confidence and trust is developed with extreme loyalty. The fiduciary duty then accompanies the professional role to increase the confidence and trust. Virtual ethics is a framework that has focused on the character of the moral agent rather than practicing right actions. This considers emotional sensitiveness, relationships, and motivations that have been considered unique and have enhanced more creative and flexible solutions rather than consequentialism. The relationship between the doctor and patient has been supported by the virtue ethics because the interaction between the parties enables them to solve moral dilemmas.
Paternalistic Model
In this model, the interaction between the patient and the doctor ensure that patient acquires treatment that best promote their medical care and health. In this case, the physician uses their skills to control the medical status of the patient and the disease process stage to identify the medical assessments that are probable to bring back their health (Mahmud,2009). This model assumes that there are shared objectives that are important in determining what is best. In this model, the doctors assume the duty of the patient’s guardian to determine what is best for the patient. This is related to the virtue ethics that ensures that the physician acts in the interest of the patient. This model has therefore supported the relationship between the doctor and patient.
The Interpretive Model
The interaction between the physician and the patient aims at clarifying the patient’s values and also understand the patient’s wants. This gives the patient the chance to choose the type of medication that realizes their values. This model increases their interaction in such a way that the doctor can tell the patient about the nature of their condition, the risks, and benefits of possible interventions. This allows an examination of the patient’s values hence supporting the virtual ethics in the medical context. In this case, it is significant to examine the values to promote autonomy of the patient. Through utilizing the two models in enhancing the relationship between the physician and patient will ensure communication between the two parties in day-to-day patient care.
Conclusion
The conceptualization has analyzed various dimensions for the conceptualization of the relationship between the doctor and the patient. These include informed consent, sharing decision making and medical interviews which are important in facilitating the relationship. The paternalistic and interpretive model has supported the relationship between the two parties through increasing their understanding. Virtue ethics has argued for a successful relationship between the physician and the patient and emphasized the dynamic of the nature of their relationship in an ethical way. This conceptualization has therefore received ethical values and defining the concept of physician concern on the interest of others.
References
Mahmud, A. (2009). Doctor-patient relationship. Pulse, 3(1), 12-14.
Mappes, T. A., & Zembaty, J. S. (1981). Biomedical ethics (p. 54). N