Grey's Anatomy Case Study

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Doctors are not god, they are humans and humans can make mistakes. However, it is the responsibility of the doctor to inform the patient about the mistakes. In this episode of Grey’s Anatomy, Dr. Derek had performed two surgeries on his patient Jen, who had seizures. During the first surgery he makes a mistake because of which the patient has to undergo second surgery. The patient’s pregnancy makes the case complicated. The second surgery is successful, but later on Dr. Addison tells the patient that she was preeclamptic. The patient and her husband being unaware what preeclampsia was, ask if they need to be worried? Dr. Derek does not allow Dr. Addison to disclose the seriousness of the matter because he wanted to enjoy the success of the …show more content…

However, one can reach an ethical decision closest to being fair by understanding what does do right relationships require and what can eventually lead to human flourishing? Human flourishing is the goal of the human life because it leads to ultimate “eudaemonia” that is happiness. According to Panicola, “It is not possible to be in right relationships and ultimately flourish as human beings without developing virtues…” (Panicola 51). When Dr. Derek decides to hide the preeclamptic condition from the patient and her husband, he was abiding by the virtue of empathy because he wanted them to take a break from always being worried about death. Even though his intentions for hiding the truth were good, his decision indicates that he was not successful in upholding the virtue of honesty, integrity and courage. He was not virtuous because the “journey towards virtues requires moral principles” (Panicola 54). The moral principles that apply to this case are the principles of veracity and informed consent, under human dignity and the principles of rationality and stewardship under justice.
After reviewing what the right relationship in the case of Dr. Derek requires, it is important to see what options are available and consider which option could lead us to an ethical decision. The available options are to (a) inform the patient’s her husband about the mistakes, probably get sued and admonish the surgeon, (b) disclose the truth, keep the surgeon by warning him, (c) keep the lie and punish the surgeon, and (d) keep the lie and not reprimand the

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