Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Stafford Hospital

Unethical behaviour of hospital staff negatively affects the reputation of hospital. This report mainly discusses impact of unethical activities on society.

Coursework Report –
Stafford Hospital

Executive Summary
Unethical behaviour of hospital staff negatively affects the reputation of hospital. In case
of Stafford hospital, 2005 to 2009 approx. 400 to 1200 patients died. Reason is, in this time
period existing hospital staff and doctors did not take their responsibility in proper manner. This
behaviour of doctors and hospital staff was completely unethical. This unethical behaviour
always puts negative impact on public behaviour. This report mainly discusses impact of
unethical activities on society.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................4
ANALYSIS......................................................................................................................................4
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Stafford Hospital..................................................................4
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Public Confidence................................................................5
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Medical Staff........................................................................6
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on the NHS................................................................................7
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
RECOMMENDATIONS.................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Ethics are basically a set of moral principles which indicates standard of humanity in a
person or in an organisation. Ethics gives opportunity to entire society to avoid such activities in
local environment which negatively influence all humans, animals and natural environment.
Ethics provides a zone where each person think about environment welfare. Ethics are known as
moral philosophy and mainly promote morality based activities. Local governments in many
countries already have mentioned ethics in their legislations. On the other side, countries have
made strict rules as well, where each person or organisation need to adhere and follow ethical
values. This report discusses ethical environment of Stafford hospital.
The Stafford hospital is a part of NHS (National Health Service). This hospital is mainly
known for its scandals. According to case study of Stafford hospital, there are 400 to 1200
patients died in the time period of January 2005 to 2009 because of poor care (Campbell, 2013).
Currently people have bad perception regarding this hospital, because they believe that doctors
and existing staff of hospital was completely careless and negligent. There is poor care, lack of
compassion, morale and lack of humanity which are major reasons behind bad image of this
hospital. When these patientshave died, Stafford hospital was very criticised by people and
international health care organisations. These all factors show the unethical environment of
hospital’s workplace.
Reputation plays great role for an organisation. Currently market reputation of the hospital is
very low. Reason is, people in the United Kingdom do not like this hospital because of its ethical
behaviour. In the time period of 2005 to 2009, existing doctors and staff did not play their job
role in ethical manner. They violated hospital ethics, due to which 400 to 1200 patients died. The
main aim of this report is to identify impact of unethical behaviour on our society.
ANALYSIS
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Stafford Hospital
Unethical ethical behaviour of an organisation negatively impacts its market reputation.
That’s way this behaviour has negatively impacted reputation of Stafford hospital (Giubilini and
Savulescu, 2017). On the other side, these actions are enough to decrease market reputation. The

government of United Kingdom has passed strict rules and regulations that, a person who serves
health and care services highly need to work with moral values and ethics. Otherwise, their
health and care licence will be declined or terminated. That’s why ethical behaviour plays great
role in each place. Specially, ethics are too necessary in the social and health care sector, because
there is no thing has more value than well-health. In the year 2005-2006, top-level management
of Stafford hospital did not take their responsibility in proper manner, so 400 to 1200 patients
were died in that time period. In such situations management must have considered all ethical
and moral values. There are ethics mainly encouraging a person to do things in social welfare,
but existing staff and doctors completely violated all ethics. Currently people really don’t like to
visit in this hospital. These all factors are showing that unethical behaviour of hospital has
negatively impacted its reputation in health and social care sector.
The hospital is able to continue operating their daily operations, but only in one
condition. The condition is top-level management of Stafford hospital should make or develop an
ethical environment where all doctors and staff completely understand their duties and roles
(Wallis, 2017). It is too necessary to increase hospital’s existing reputation in market, because
currently it does not have better and effective market reputation. The management of hospital
can easily run their operations, if it will follow and adhere to all legal and ethical considerations
at workplace. The hospital operates by NHS trust, so upper authority in trust should create a
strict policy for those staff and doctors who does not take their job role seriously. By following
these factors, the top-level management of hospital will be able to easily run and operate its
operations.
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Public Confidence
Unethical behaviour can negatively influence public confidence, because people avoid
going in such hospital where existing doctors and staff does not perform their job role properly
(Milligan and Jones, 2016). According to case study of Stafford hospital, currently most people
in the United Kingdom avoid to take treatment from this hospital. This hospital has presented its
very bad or negative image in international health and social care sector because of its unethical
activities. Almost all people were learnt about this hospital’s scandal in different articles and
news in the time period of 2005 to 2006. Many people who are working in health and social care
sector still mentioned scandal of this hospital in their various interviews. Local people always

choose alternative hospitals to take treatment of any disease. Bu nowadays people know that,
hospital is working on improving their health and care services (Sorrell, 2017). On the other side,
most people in the United Kingdom are completely literate. They like to do things in social
welfare, that’s why unethical behaviour of the Stafford hospital was negatively impacted public
confidence or mind-set of people.
Most people said that the hospital should not be allowed to continue to operate. But some
people have agreed with this statement that, the NHS should allow hospital to operate. People
said that, this time National Health Service should develop strict rules and regulations for this
hospital before it allow hospital to operate. According to these rules and regulations, each staff
and doctor of hospital will follow ethical considerations in their daily operations. If any doctor or
staff will not do its duty properly, then it can have penalised from local court.
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on Medical Staff
Unethical behaviour has negatively impacted medical staff of Stafford hospital, because
they are the people who conducted unethical activities in hospital. On the basis of medical staff’s
unethical behaviour, currently most people in the UK do not like them. Many medical staff of
that hospital dropped their jobs, when hospital’s scandal was released publicly. In this case,
medical staff lost their jobs because of their unethical behaviour (Notini, 2018). That’s why this
behaviour has negatively impacted medical staff of Stafford hospital. People in UK still criticises
these staff on different platforms. Medical staff has learnt that they must always avoid unethical
behaviour. They have learnt from this case that; a medical staff is completely responsible to take
care of their patients in hospital. If any staff or doctor is not following ethics in its job role, then
these actions of staff or doctor totally come under unethical behaviour.
The national health service of the UK should give permission to hospital to continue its
operation, but this time upper authority of NHS need to give order to hospital’s management for
hiring some efficient and skilled staff. In case, if top-level management of Stafford hospital does
not change their staff and doctors, then NHS may not give permission to this hospital to operate.
Impact of Unethical Behaviour on the NHS
Currently many hospitals in United Kingdom come under direction of NHS (National
Health Service). Each hospital and health & social care organisation is responsible to implement

all rules and regulations which are developed by NHS for health and social care sector (Daniels,
2017). It is necessary to maintain an ethical environment in this particular sector. Unethical
behaviour of doctors and staff in Stafford hospital has impacted to national health service to
create some strict policies for all hospitals in this country. Its main aim or objective is to create
such environment where all patients feel better and well.
NHS should allow hospital for conducting its all activities and operations but now it is
not an easy task to top-level management of Stafford hospital to attract lots of patients towards
hospital. Reason is, currently it has very poor and bad reputation in health and social care sector.
The first priority of management is to build a positive image of hospital in market, so people will
start to trust on it. These are really necessary tasks to management. If hospital again repeats same
unethical behaviour in the future, then NHS can permanently terminate licence of this hospital.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded that each hospital within health and social care sector is responsible
to employ an ethical behaviour at workplace. It is necessary to provide the best caring facilities
to patients. Activities which were conducted by Stafford hospital in 2005 to 2006 are completely
unethical. Top-level management of hospital should understand the basic thing that, providing
happy and healthy environment is the first priority of a hospital. A doctor or staff can easily
show its high humanity level, if it follows ethics in its job role. Patients always has huge
expectations from doctors and hospital staff. In this case, if these doctors and staff do not give
value to their patients, then this action will indirectly violate ethics and moral values. Currently
many people in this country do not like this hospital because of its past unethical attempts. In this
case, if NHS will allow this hospital to run its daily operations, then national health service need
to provide it a strict guideline as well. In this guideline upper management of NHS need to
mention that, hospital should run its all activities in proper manner, and it will be responsible to
integrate ethical and moral values in daily operations.
RECOMMENDATIONS
National health service should develop some strict policies for each hospital and health
care organisation. In these policies NHS need to mentioned that, if any hospital or health care

organisation violate ethics in their operations, then that particular hospital will be penalised by
court (Krause and Boldt, 2018). Top-level management of that hospital will face many legal
issues like; court hearing, fine etc. so the management should avoid such all attempts which can
violate ethics. The main aim of NHS is to create an ethical environment in health and social care
sector of the United Kingdom. In this case, if hospital break major rules and regulations, then it
will need to pay huge amount in penalty charges.
Hospitals within this country need to hire only such people in their workplace which are
capable to provide the best health and care services. It is necessary to build a trust aspect within
patients. Currently most patients avoid taking treatment in those hospitals which have conducted
some unethical attempts in the past. That’s why management in each hospital should consider
ethics in their daily operations. According to recent reports, if health care organisation and
hospital run unethical activities in their workplace, then the existing management of that
organisation or hospital may face legal punishments (Papanikitas and Spicer, 2017). This step of
UK government is too effective to maintain an ethical environment in health and social sector.
Many fraud cases are also raising in this particular sector, so this strict step of local government
will contribute in stopping such issues.
NHS should give permission to Stafford hospital to run its operations, but now this time
top-level management of hospital should consider all ethical values in their operations. If
management not follow all rules and regulation of NHS in their workplace, then it will be
terminated by upper management of national health service. The hospital can build its positive
reputation in health and social care sector, if it will provide the best health and care services to
patients (Nguyen, 2018). When the management of hospital has employed all rules and
regulations, then it will be able to maintain an ethical environment in their workplace.

REFERENCES
Books & Journals
Giubilini, A. and Savulescu, J., 2017. Guest Editorial: Conscientious Objection in Healthcare:
Problems and Perspectives. Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics. 26(1), pp.3-5.
Wallis, K.A., 2017. No-fault, no difference: no-fault compensation for medical injury and
healthcare ethics and practice. Br J Gen Pract. 67(654). pp.38-39.
Sorrell, J.M., 2017. Ethics: Ethical issues with medical errors: Shaping a culture of safety in
healthcare. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. 22(2).
Notini, L., 2018, December. Philosophy of Healthcare Ethics Practice Statements: Quality
Attestation and Beyond. In HEC Forum (Vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 341-360). Springer
Netherlands.
Daniels, A., 2017. Roadshows, ethics and the healthcare home. Australian Pharmacist. 36(3).
p.1.
Milligan, E. and Jones, J., 2016. Rethinking Autonomy and Consent in Healthcare Ethics.
In Bioethics-Medical, Ethical and Legal Perspectives. IntechOpen.
Krause, F. and Boldt, J., 2018. Caring About Care in the Hospital Arena and Nurses’ Voices in
Hospital Ethics Committees: Three Decades of Experiences--Care in Healthcare:
Reflections on Theory and Practice.
Papanikitas, A. and Spicer, J., 2017. Teaching and learning ethics in primary healthcare.
In Handbook of Primary Care Ethics. (pp. 225-232). CRC Press.
Nguyen, J., 2018. Key Trends in Healthcare Law and Ethics. Legal and Ethical Issues for Health
Professions. E-Book, p.162.
Online
Campbell, D. 2013. Mid Staffs hospital scandal: the essential guide. [Online]. Available
Through: <https://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/feb/06/mid-staffs-hospital-
scandal-guide>.