NURS3046 Nursing Project

Human dignity has been described as a principle in which every human has a right to be respected, valued as a unique being, and treated ethically with honor. This should be done with no conditions. It shouldn’t be based on what one is capable of doing, who they are, religious and political background or the social class they belong. Human dignity can never be earned nor taken away from someone. The Catholic Church argues that “life is sacred and the dignity of the human person is the moral vision for the society we live in”. It is therefore evident enough that human dignity is one of the most important virtues that need to be realized and practiced today and in the future. Common good on the other hand has been illustrated as what can be generally accepted and beneficial to all (Condit, 2016). This, therefore, requires consideration of all people’s interest and their equity in general.

The doctrine of the common good is what should inspire people towards thinking of health services. The Roman Catholic contends the common good as “the sum total of social conditions which allow people either as groups or as individuals to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily” (Haile,2017). The common good principle completely differs from John Stuart Mills argument on the common good “greatest good for the greatest number”. This because it discriminates the minority group in the community and only favors the majority. Precisely is the term that has been used in our today’s living where the majority wins. The common good must never be administered at the expense of the less privileged in the community. Instead, it should be used to bring together all the different kind of society

The dignity of the human person must never be violated. The Catholic teachings hold that life begins at conception until natural death. It’s, therefore, a responsibility to safeguard the life of a human person. Practices that takes a human life such as abortion, euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide violates the principle of the dignity of the human person (Kammer, 2012). The dignity of the human person realization applies both to the patients whose health is on the hands of the physicians and also on the medical attendants. The nurses, physicians, the pharmacist should not be forced into practices that undermine their career ethics and not to mention their conscience.

The common good has been compared to be more like being in a team. In a team of players, they have to work with cooperation in order to win. Even as much as a single player want to win, they can never win without the help of the rest in the team (Kelly, 2017). Solidarity as a principle must, therefore, be practiced all for the common good. It’s, therefore, the responsibility of each person to enable the development and growth of themselves and their fellow neighbors. This can be guaranteed through unifying and bringing to existence of health institutions, policies and not forgetting safety and protection of all at the expense of realization of the common good.

 There are various activities that the medical attendants can practice to help on the human dignity and realization of the common good. They can choose to organize a seminar and educate people on better living standards (Barilan, 2014). They can choose to educate people on the benefits of eating healthy diets and on this risk associated with irregular exercises. When people are able to understand issues such as osteoporosis, obesity, tooth cavities which may come up as a result of eating a lot of sugars and failure to brush off the teeth they will be able to uplift their dignity and refrain from activities that may bring harm to their health.

 Medical attendants can also team up with the government and campaign on environmental sanitation. This will reduce various advanced reactions that result from a poor sanitation, for example, mild fever all for the common good. Medical attendants through the help of the community can choose to educate the youths on the issues of health as a human right and realization of the dignity of the human person and the common good. Through educating the youths it can be ensured that the dignity of the human person and realization of the common good will still continue on the next generation (Hilgendorf, 2017).

References

Barilan, Y. M. (2014). Human dignity, human rights, and responsibility: The new language of global ethics and biolaw.

Condit, D. P. (2016, November). Catholic social teachings: precepts for health in respect to human dignity. The Linacre quarterly, 83(4). Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5375599/

Haile, B. H. (2017, November). your faith

Human Dignity, Human Rights and Criminal Law in Israel and Germany, Hilgendorf, E., Kremnitzer, M., & Duncker et Humblot. (2018). Human dignity and criminal law: Würzburg Conference on Human Dignity,

Kammer, F. K. (2012). HEALTH PROGRESS. the catholic health association of the united states. Retrieved from https://www.chausa.org/publications/health-progress/article/july-august-2012/the-common-good-and-health-care-reform

KELLY, B. R. (2017). DIGNITY, MENTAL HEALTH AND HUMAN RIGHTS: Coercion and the law. S.l.: ROUTLEDGE

Human Rights and Criminal Law in Israel and Germany, July 20–22, 2015.