Week 2 Project
Instructions
Before beginning work on this assignment, please review the expanded grading rubric for specific instructions relating to content and formatting.
UTILITARIAN ETHICS
Each week, you will have the opportunity to explore an ethical theory—consequential ethics, utilitarian ethics, deontological ethics, and nonconsequential ethics—in the context of a case scenario from your textbook. In this week, the focus will be on utilitarian ethics.
Utilitarian ethics is a result-based theory that says the moral worth of an action is determined solely by its ability to maximize happiness or pleasure for all.
Tasks:
Download and save the assignment template to your computer and update the file name to include your last name.
Review the assigned case in its entirety.
Address the questions posed in detail and with appropriate scholarly support.
To support your work, use your course and textbook readings and also use the South University Online Library. As in all assignments, cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format.
Submission Details
By the due date assigned, submit your document to the Submissions Area.
MHA6060: Health Law
and Ethics
Week 2 Assignment
UTILITARIAN ETHICAL
THEORY
Please review the following case:
Daniel
was the last of the five interviewees for the CEO’s position at Anytown Medical
Center. During the interview, a member of the finance committee asked, “Daniel,
how would you maximize an allocation of $100,000 to spend for improving patient
care, besides the capital budget and construction projects?” Bishop Paul, the
board chairman, added, “Daniel, think about the question. I will give you five
minutes to form an answer.” Daniel responded, “Bishop Paul, I am ready to
answer your question.” The trustees looked somewhat surprised, as Bishop Paul
with a smile quickly responded, “You may proceed with your answer.”
Daniel
replied, “An old Chinese proverb came to my mind as quickly as the question was
asked: ‘Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and
you feed him for a lifetime.’ You are interviewing me as the CEO of your
hospital. I see my job is to assure you that employees are thoroughly trained
to care for the patients whom the hospital serves. I will maximize the value of
each and every dollar by determining the skill sets that the staff is lacking
and retrain the staff in the areas where deficiencies are noted.”
Bishop
Paul looked around the long oval table at the trustees, “This has been a long
day and a grueling interview process for Daniel. Are there any other questions
you would like to ask him?” There was silence, as the trustees nodded their
heads no. Bishop Paul looked at Daniel and thanked him for his interest in
becoming the hospital’s next CEO.
Bishop
Paul smiled and turned his swivel chair around as Daniel was walking toward the
exit and asked, “Daniel, could you not leave the building just yet. If you
could just wait outside the room and have a seat in the doctors’ lounge area.”
After about twenty minutes, a trustee went into the lounge where Daniel was
sitting and asked him to return to the boardroom. As he entered the room,
Bishop Paul stood up and looked at Daniel straight in his eyes and said,
“Daniel, you were the last to be interviewed because you were on the “short
list” of candidates selected to be interviewed.
Speaking
for the board, your response to the last question was merely icing on the cake,
confirming our interest in you joining our staff. Both the Board of Trustees
and members of the Medical Executive Committee unanimously have recommended you
as our CEO, with which I unconditionally concur. “Welcome to Anytown Hospital.”
The trustees stood and clapped their hands. The bishop turned to the trustees
and said, “Wow, that’s a first!”
Please address the following
questions drawing support from your course resources and credible scholarly
resources cited in APA format:
1. Summarize the main tenets of
utilitarian theory of ethics and discuss how Daniel’s response to the trustee’s
question of how he would spend the $100,000 fits the utilitarian theory of
ethics.
2. Assess whether other theories of
ethics also apply here and provide a comparison and justification for at least
one other theory—consequential, deontological, or nonconsequential.
3. Discuss if Daniel, metaphorically
speaking, succeeded in maximizing happiness in the eyes of the board.
References
Special Note
Special Instruction/Notes for the Project:
Research is required for each section (a minimum of/at least three different citations per section). Note that the rubric calls for explicit research. At least three separate academic citations/sources per section!
Please show where all bullet points start and end.
Please provide a well-defined conclusion. All submissions are to have a conclusion.
Please provide three pages explaining and answering the questions.
Please ensure no substantial (huge) spacing gaps between the individual paragraphs and references.
Please make sure that the individual references are in alphabetical order.
