All persons who practice or work in the health care environment make decisions that affect patients, and how these decisions are made have ethical ramifications. Before reading further in this course, it would be beneficial for you to stop and write your definition of the terms ethics and morality . It is important that you reflect for a moment on your own perspective regarding what health care ethics means before reading a definition.
Morality is the more general term and applies to society at large.
It refers to what we tend to agree upon as a society regarding right and wrong. Of course, we do not always agree about things in society, and it may be difficult for us to arrive at a consensus on particular topics, but morality refers to those things in which we can share some values. Culture, religion, or family background will influence our sense of morality. We should also remember that our norms regarding morality can change over time. Think of how we have changed in our beliefs and treatment regarding women and persons of color during the last century.