Finding Balance Between Professional Integrity and Patient Centered Care: Creating Inclusive Spaces in Situations of Conscientious Objection
Thursday, October 12, 2023
2:30 PM – 3:45 PM ET
Location: Galena (Fourth Floor)
It is widely accepted that healthcare professionals are not obligated to provide health services they oppose based on freedom of conscience and religion. However, since obtaining care depends on healthcare professionals' willingness to provide health services, there is tension between this right of conscience and a patient’s right to access to safe and timely care.
This presentation reflects on the creation of a right of conscience guideline at our organization. Rather than focusing on the conflict between the rights of patients and providers, we reframe the issue to consider how collaboration amongst teams, organizations, and the healthcare system can facilitate patient access while accommodating provider objections. The guideline promotes the creation of inclusive spaces and practices regarding conscientious objection by acknowledging the moral diversity amongst healthcare providers, while respecting patients' freedom of conscience as expressed through their healthcare choices. This approach explicitly recognizes the conscience rights of diverse members of the healthcare team, beyond the traditional focus on physicians and nurses. It also balances the rights of diverse professionals who express their conscience by participating in a morally controversial clinical practice, as well as those who conscientiously object.
Considering that both patients and healthcare providers have legitimate moral interests, in this presentation, we will (1) review ethical considerations surrounding the right of conscience, (2) explore the roles and responsibilities of the healthcare team and organization when confronted with situations of conscientious objection, and (3) discuss a patient-centered team approach to managing conscientious objection.
Kathryn Morrison, PhD – Clinical & Organizational Ethicist, Program for Ethics and Care Ecologies, Hamilton Health Sciences; Winifred Badaiki, MD, MA – Clinical Ethicist, Program for Ethics and Care Ecologies, Hamilton Health Sciences