After reading Chapter 3, I can see where different approaches to communication ethics plays out in my own life, sometimes simultaneously. For example, I worked in a pharmacy as a pharmacy technician for several years. The company I worked for had very strict policies which were regulated by health and privacy laws. These policies are an example of codes, procedures, and standards which exist in communication ethics. However, many of the customers who frequented the pharmacy were in compromising emotional or economic situations. Sometimes people's insurance would be declined, or they did not have insurance altogether.
I once had a woman burst into tears because she did not have insurance coverage and the price of her medication was $400 for 12 pills. She needed the medication for a long term illness, but simply could not afford it. She told me she would just go home and eventually the illness would kill her. I have never felt so terrible in my life as I did when I watched her cry and had to stand by company policy and turn her away. I wanted to take a contextual approach to communication and find a way for this sick woman to still be able to get the medicine she needed. The company however, would not allow payment plans or anything else. The rigidity of the rules the company followed could be an example of the universal-humanitarian approach, as it allowed no exceptions. There was no way for me to skirt the company rules without getting myself, my coworkers, or the company in trouble. Although I did the right thing denying her in accordance to company rules and ethics, I personally felt that this was extremely unethical. This is a good example of two different approaches to ethics existing in one situation.
Your experience as a pharmacy technician and the struggle you faced in the face of the elderly customer is a great (albeit emotionally tearing) example of conflicting goods in ethical communication. This only further proves that context is extremely important in ethical decision-making and that no two situations are exactly the same. Outcomes can change depending on individual persons' underlying goods and values, which in turn affect the overarching communication ethic. I have no doubt that conflicting communication ethics are a common occurrence for many individuals and a daily struggle to face. I, too, faced a similar situation where I had to turn away a customer who could not pay for their meal. My "way around it" was to pay for the meal after my shift and deliver it to the man outside. It is by no means equal to a $400 pharmacy bill, but I felt like I had successfully held to both communication ethics (codes/procedures/standards and universal-humanitarian).
ReplyDeleteI can most definitely sympathize with you because I think we have all been in a position where we are forced to do something, but the right answer may not be what we are being forced to do. I think that if it weren't the companies policy, this situation would be more open to different methods of communication ethics, but because it was a corporately agreed-upon code, you only had one option. This helps show the issues that can arise and why communication ethics can be so difficult. The company knew that situations like this could arise, and ethically, people would want to help others, and because of that, they needed to create a policy to help avoid those situations. The complexity of communication ethics is so apparent, but this 6 methods can help clarify to some degree.
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