Francis Bacon (1561-1626) divided the practice of medicine into three distinct areas: (1) the preservation of health, (2) the cure of disease and (3) the prolongation of life. 2. Prima Facie Duties
Prima facie duties are attributed to W.D. Ross. In an attempt to unite specific aspects of nonconsequentialism with those of utilitarianism, Ross determined that in deciding between ethical alternatives to a problem, the options must be weighed according to the duties that would be fulfilled by performing or not performing each option. Ross described prima facie duties as being intuitive and conditional. He defined intuition as being simply the feeling within that an act or action is right. Prima facie duties are conditional …show more content…
The two most notable types of teleological ethical theories are egoism and utilitarianism. (1) Egoism: the promotion of the best long-term interests of the individual. Egoism may be divided further into two types: personal and impersonal. a. Personal egoists pursue their own best long-term interests. b. Impersonal egoists believe that everyone should choose the act or action that promotes his or her best interests over the long-term. (2) Utilitarianism: Simply holds that we should act to produce the greatest ratio of good to evil for all concerned. Utilitarianism has two categories: act and rule. a. Act Utilitarianism asserts that the correct act is the one that produces the greatest ratio of good to bad. b. Rule Utilitarianism decrees that we should base our actions on the consequences of the rule or rules under which an act or action falls, not on the consequences of the act or action itself.
10. Core Values
The difference in values provides the impetus for ongoing disputes over such issues as abortion, euthanasia and allocation of scarce resources. However, in society, most individuals are expected to possess certain similar values have been