As a future occupational therapy practitioner, it is
imperative to abide by the AOTA Code of Ethics. Providing the best, safe, and
fair treatment to our clients is at the forefront of our profession.
The AOTA
Code of Ethics has 6 principles that should be followed and that can guide
therapists when they face a situation involving ethics. These principles
include: beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy, justice, veracity, and fidelity
(American Occupational Therapy Association, 2015). Ethical distress and
dilemmas are similar yet different and can interfere with upholding these
principles. Ethical distress deals with day-to-day problems in which the person
knows the right thing to do, but they are unable to follow through with it due
to other obstacles (Canadian Nurses Association, 2003). An example of ethical
distress would be gossiping. If on fieldwork I heard several of the OTs
participate in gossip about clients, this would cause me ethical distress. I
would choose to not participate in or listen to the gossip and even change the
subject if possible. On the other hand, an ethical dilemma is where there is a
clear violation of the code of ethics.
An example of an ethical dilemma would be noticing that an OT student at
the same fieldwork site as you listed their credentials as OTR instead of OTS.
You would have to make the ethical decision to confront them about this issue and
inform the correct personnel. The principle being violated would be veracity.
On level 1
& II fieldworks, we are evaluated on our performance and ethical
decision-making. One of the first standards that we are required to meet is
obeying the code of ethics. This means following and respecting all 6
principles listed above. Remaining confidential, using our best judgment for
safety, knowing when to say when/call for help, billing/documenting, and
supervising others are all tasks that need to be performed as a level II
fieldwork student. It will be important to know the standards ahead of time to
prevent an ethical dilemma from happening.
References
American
Occupational Therapy Association. (2015). Occupational therapy code of ethics. American Journal of Occupational Therapy,
69(3), 6913410030. http://dx.doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2015.696S03
Canadian
Nurses Association.(2003). Ethical distress in health care environments. Ethics in Practice for Registered Nurses, 1480-9990. Retrieved from https://www.cna-aiic.ca/~/media/cna/page-content/pdf-en/ethics_pract_ethical_distress_oct_2003_e.pdf?la=en
Flick,
J. (2017). Conflict, Ethics, & Legal….Oh My! [Word Document]. Retrieved
from www.blackboard.uthsc.edu