Sometimes, deciding on the right thing to do can be difficult. This is where ethics is useful. Ethics is a word describing the morals that govern a person’s behaviour. It’s all about the ways we do, and should, treat each other. Deciding the “right” or “best” thing to do involves both thinking of our values, and the relevant facts and evidence. While there may not always be one right choice, there will be better choices than others. The “best” choice—the one that does the most good, or the least harm—is usually accepted as the most ethical choice.
How the IWK makes ethical decisions
One of our goals at the IWK is to continue to build a culture of ethics. That means a culture that fosters and supports ethics in everyday practice. We’re building a future of strong ethical decision-making through education, collaboration, and consultation. Our Ethics Committee helps support good decision-making through ethics education, policy development, and organizational ethics (a consultation process encourages the application of an ethics “lens” to decisions made at all levels of the IWK). We’re also supporting our efforts with a Clinical Ethics Consultation (a subcommittee of the Ethics Committee), a research ethics board, and collaborations with other relevant organizations.
Helping you make ethical decisions
The IWK Ethics Tool has questions to help patients and families think about what is important to them, which can help them make ethical decisions. Within the tool are suggestions about who to talk with and useful ethics resources. The Ethics Tool can help patients and families feel better about the decisions they have to make or the situation they’re in. It can also help individuals feel like they’ve done everything they can to make the situation better for themselves or their family.