Ethics In Dealing With Problem Of Obesity
My project is a 6-week intervention to address obesity as the identified global issue in Bowie city, Maryland. I have encountered some ethical issues thus far in my project development. First, many residents of the community who are overweight do not want to give accurate information about their total weight. This issue is connected with confidential information. Many obese people have low self-esteem and feel shame when they discuss their weight. Second, initially, I failed to gain community support and many residents of the city criticized my idea to develop an anti-obesity intervention. This issue is connected with human rights. According to Deborah Lupton (2013), “the intense focus on people’s body weight contravenes human rights”(p. 23). The right to dignity can be violated by anti-obesity intervention because some people make fun of obese people. Their attitude may lead to discrimination of obese people. Finally, I have encountered an issue of cultural diversity.Ethics In Dealing With Problem Of Obesity
I believe that these ethical issues should be addressed in the proper way. I will integrate ethical principles into my project. I will preserve dignity, privacy and treat every participant of the program equally. I realize that I should avoid the unwanted intervention into the life of obese people. However, as a health care professional, I bear responsibility for persuading them to change their habits and lose weight. I will explain them that my project is not focused on continual dieting cycle. Obese people will be able to lose weight without any feeling of guilt or shame. Moreover, I will follow the professional Code of Ethics specially developed for health care professionals who work in community settings. I will use various approaches that respect diverse values and cultures established in the community setting. Thus, my ethical responsibility is to provide protection to the target population from harm and provide respect for individual rights of all participants of the project.
References
Lupton, D. (2013). Fat. New York: Routledge.Ethics In Dealing With Problem Of Obesity