The term distributive justice refers to fair, equitable, and appropriate distribution of resources and opportunities within society. Problems of distributive justice arise under conditions of scarcity, competition, and unequal access to care. The principle of confidentiality requires keeping what is known about patients confidential. Exceptions to confidentiality are made when the law requires that certain diseases and conditions be reported in order to protect the health of a community. Fidelity refers to doing one's duty and keeping one's word.
Veracity refers to truthtelling.
Ethical dilemmas Decision makers find themselves in ethical dilemmas when they must choose between courses of action that are based on different moral frameworks, varying organizational philosophies, or conflicting duties or moral principles. Although in some cases reasonable people can be immovably committed to different courses of action, in most ethical dilemmas the various players can reach consensus despite cultural or religious differences. Differing ethical theories do not necessarily conflict, and people following diverse philosophies may reach the same conclusions via different reasoning. 9 Remember, if people didn't have differences of opinions about particular situation, there would be no ethical dilemma. As more and more people have recognized the importance of bioethics, ethics committees have sprung up in many healthcare settings.