ETHICS IN HUMAN RELATIONS

BY MADHURI BIND

ETHICS IN HUMAN RELATIONS

Ethics in its simplest interation is the analysis of right or wrong. Ethics can also mean the study of what makes actions right or wrong. The implication of this is that there is a certain supreme moral principle that one can refer to in times of difficult moral decisions.

 In the domain of human relations ethics encompasses the values of honesty, loyalty, openness, integrity, respect, fairness, and accurate communication. Historically, the view of the general public of human relations practitioners are related to unethical practices, untruthful and misleading messages. Some people even go to the extreme of suggesting that ethics cannot exist in the context of human relations because the practice itself is of manipulation, persuasion, and propaganda.

ETHICAL GUIDANCE FOR HUMAN RELATIONS PRACTITIONERS

The practice of human relations can present unique and challenging ethical issues. At the same time, protecting integrity and the public trust are fundamental to the professions role and reputation. Bottom line, successful human relations hinges on the ethics of its practitioners.

 To help members navigate ethics principles and applications, the Society created, and continues to maintain Code of Ethics. Under the Code, widely regarded as the hospital standard, members pledge to core values, principles and practice guidelines that define their professionalism and advance their success.

THE CODE ADVISES PROFESSIONALS TO Protect and advance the free flow of accurate and truthful information. Foster informed decision making through open communication. Protect confidential and private information. Promote healthy and fair competition among professionals. Avoid conflicts of interest.

 Work to strengthen the clients trust in the profession. Be honest and accurate in all communications. Act in the best interest of clients. Safeguard the confidences and privacy rights of clients. Avoid conflicts between personal and professional interests. Decline representation of clients requiring actions contrary to the Code. Report all ethical violations to the appropriate authority.

ETHICS IN COMMUNICATION WITH PATIENT CARE

PROFESSIONALISM
Verbal and nonverbal behaviors greatly influence the helping relationship. The patient's acceptance of you as a professional often depends on the manner in which you present a professional and caring image. Professional appearance and behavior are important in establishing trust worthiness and competence.

COURTESY
Courtesy techniques include saying hello and goodbye, knocking on doors before entering, introducing oneself and stating one's purpose. Some other aspects of courtesy are addressing people by name, saying "please" and "thank-you" to team members, and apologizing for making an error or causing someone distress.

 These are all parts of good Professional communication when you are discourteous, patients and staff will perceive you as rude, crude, or insensitive. Discourtesy sets up barriers between you and the patient and causes friction, or tension, among team members.

AVOID TERMS OF ENDEARMENT

Calling the patients by honey "dear," "Grandpa," or "sweetheart" rather than by a personal name is inappropriate. Such casual familiarity from caregivers offends most people.

CONFIDENTIALITY
It is essential that you safeguard the patient's right to privacy by carefully protecting information of a confidential nature. Reassure the person that you will keep information private, and then keep that promise. Resist the temptation to share exciting or shocking information.

 Do not share information with people who are genuinely interested and concerned but have no legal right to the information. If you have to report information to others, tell the patient in advance, if at all possible. Sharing personal information or gossiping about others violates both nursing's ethical code and practice standards. It sends the message that you are not trustworthy and damages interpersonal relationships.

TRUST
Trust is an essential building block of the helping relationship. Do not compromises trust by acting as if you are "too busy?" Such a response becomes protective excuse for not becoming involved with the patient. You foster trust when you communicate warmth and caring. Demonstrate consistency, reliability, honesty, and competence.

 Trusting another person involves risk and vulnerability, but it also fosters open, therapeutic communication and enhances the expression of feelings, thoughts, and needs. Being untrustworthy or dishonest seriously undermines relationships and violates legal and ethical standards of practice. Although it is not always easy, do not withhold key information, lie, or distort the truth.

AVOID INAPPROPRIATE SOCIALIZING

Move beyond social conversation to talk about issues or concerns affecting the patient's health.

AVOID PASSIVE RESPONSES

Passive responses avoid issues or conflict. Some characteristics are feelings of sadness, depression, anxiety and hopelessness.

AVOID AGGRESSIVE RESPONSES

Aggressive responses provoke confrontation at the other person's expense. Some characteristics of aggression are feelings of anger, frustration, resentment, and stress.

HUMOR
Humor is a coping strategy that adds perspective and helps you and the patient adjust to stress. Humor helps provide emotional support to patients and humanizes the illness experience. Laughter provides both a psychological and physical release for you and the patient, promotes open, relaxed interaction, and illustrates our shared experience in being human.

EMPATHY
Empathy is the ability to understand and accept another person's reality, to accurately perceive feelings, and to communicate this understanding to the other. Empathy statements reflect an understanding of what has been communicated and tell the person that you heard both the feeling and the factual content of the communication. They foster shared respect and goals. Empathy statements are neutral and nonjudgmenta1.

SYMPATHY
Sympathy is a subjective look at another person's world that prevents a clear perspective of all sides of the issues confronting that person. Sharing sympathy with another feels good, creates a bond, and minimizes differences.

LISTENING AND RESPONDING

Active listening means listening attentively with the whole person-mind, body, and spirit. To be an active listener, listen for main and supportive ideas, acknowledge and respond, and give appropriate feedback. Pay attention to the other person's total communication, including the content, the intent, and the feelings expressed.

 Attentive listening allows you to better understand the message others communicate to you and is an excellent way to build trust. In many situations, the person just wants someone to listen.

PROVIDE INFORMATION
Giving information, whether factual information or professional advice, helps the other person make decisions. Informing patients helps reduce anxiety and meet patient needs for safety and security. When offering suggestions, stress that the patient has the right to make decisions about options so that patient autonomy is maintained. Speak in simple language, and translate medical terms.

SILENCE
Silence as a response is often one of the most important interviewing techniques to learn. It requires a sense of confidence and comfort and permits the interviewee to sort out thoughts and feelings and search for responses to questions. It also allows for sharing of feelings and help to understand the emotion of the situation to its depth.

REASSURANCE
Often patients are anxious about their health condition, progress of the disease & outcome of the illness. Anxiety of the patient is often communicated to patients nonverbally or verbally & hinders recovery of the patients. Therefore, a nurse has the responsibility to alleviate the anxiety of the patients.

 This can be done by- exploring about the patients concerns, giving periodic information about their health conditions, informing about the prognosis of the disease, alleviating guilt feeling, reassuring & making them realize their positive potentials of their health status.

GUIDELINES TO AVOID MORAL AND ETHICAL CONFLICTS

BE KNOWLEDGEABLE IN HUMAN RELATIONS.

Professionals in the field of human relations must have knowledge and focus on ethics before they encounter a situation of difficult moral decision. Practitioners must be fully familiar with the ethical values of their organizations before these values are put under public scrutiny.

BE AWARE OF YOUR VALUES.

Human relations practitioners should be totally aware of their own values. Taking stock of their own values as individuals and practitioners of human relations will be of immense help when the moment comes that these values will be put under pressure by a client, a supervisor, or by the public.

BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY STICKY SITUATIONS.

Be vigilant of and identify issues that have the potential to become ethical dilemmas. The failure to identify and act on ethical issues will often result in costly failures and human relations debacles for the organization concerned. Early identification of ethical issues will allow more time for analysis, discussion, research, and resolution of these issues.

WALK THE TALK OF THE MISSION STATEMENT.

Human relations professionals should be aware of the fundamental values inherent in the organizations mission statement or code of ethics. Focus on the ethics approach that will be the nearest to organizational values in practice. The function of human relations in this area would be to encourage discussion and ethical debate throughout the organization by using internal communications.

TRAIN YOUR STAFF WELL

Educating top to bottom level management of the capabilities of human relations and prevention of ethical dilemmas can contribute to the success of the organization by the utilization of issues management, relationships with patients, and conflict resolution methods.

SUMMARY
Communicating is something that comes naturally on a daily basis, but effective communication is something that requires a certain amount of knowledge. Learning the steps of effective communication is important in any setting. It allows you to convey your thoughts in a meaningful and genuine way, and it allows you to avoid and resolve conflict quickly. Effective communication leads to strong human relations, which is vital to success in both your personal life and your career life .