The Legal and Ethical Framework within Health and Social Care Work

This essay delves into the intricate relationship between ethics and legislation within the health and social care sector, emphasizing their combined influence on practitioners' conduct. It highlights how laws, as codified norms, and ethics, as internal guiding principles, work together to protect public health, welfare, and safety. The essay illustrates that while laws often embody ethical principles, they are not entirely coextensive, with ethics sometimes setting a higher behavioral standard. It further explores the interplay between legal regulations and ethical considerations, showing how legislation regulates ethical activities, protects human rights, and defines the relationship between practitioners and service users, emphasizing the importance of practitioners understanding and adhering to core values and respecting basic human rights.

Explore the legal framework within
which health and social care
practitioners operate

Table of Contents
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................1

MAIN BODY
Describing the relationship between ethics and legislation in relation to the work of Health
and social care practitioners.
Law and ethics ifs found virtually in all spheres of society. Ethics and laws both have
similar purposes that is guiding the human conduct to make a civilized existence in the society
(Ulrich and Grady, 2018). Laws are the collections of codified norms that are enforceable by the
state on the other hand ethics are the collections of norms that guides the internal judgements and
compass of an individual. They govern the actions of practitioners around the globe on daily
basis. That is legislation and ethics works hand in hand, ensuring that individuals act in a certain
way and coordinates the efforts so that they can protect the health, welfare and safety of the
public. Usually law at times embodies principles of ethics, but law and ethics are not co-
extensive. Based on the society's ethics, laws are enforced and governed by the government that
mediates the relationship with another. On the other hand ethics are the values that a practitioner
ought to follow while performing its duties.
Law and ethics are the two vital aspects in the work of social and health care practitioners
(Doherty, 2020). Every worker has to practice according to the law and with their code of
conduct of ethics. The relation between the ethics and law in context with the health care
practitioners is very complex. That is many laws are a representation of ethics that is there are
times when ethics are considered before shaping a law. For example; the idea that there should
be equality and diversity at workplace is derived from the ethical value that human beings are
born equal so there should be no discrimination. It can be said that ethics are closely related to
law, but they are not identical (Rasoal and et.al., 2017). For example; some times ethics provides
a high standard of behaviour in compared to law. Also, law differs from country to country but
ethics are applied irrespective of any boundaries. In order to respond to the patients needs,
practitioners should practice and know the core values which provides autonomy and ability in
their work by respecting the basic human rights that are the base of social ethics. It can also be
said that laws and ethics sometimes overlap (Thompson and et.al.,2021). For example; it is the
right of every individual to have equal treatment throughout their treatment that is the health
care practitioners should provide fair and just treatment to each and every patient. Also, the code
of ethics abides the practitioners to provide equal and fair treatment by respecting the
uniqueness, dignity and worthiness of each and every individual. However, legislation with its

legal regulations and framework regulates the ethical activities of the practitioners. It determines
the status of practitioner conducting the practices and its relationship with the users of its
services (Kyaw and et.al., 2019). It leads to protection of human rights and protection of rights of
health and social care workers.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Doherty, R.F., 2020. Ethical Dimensions in the Health Professions-E-Book. Elsevier Health
Sciences.
Kyaw and et.al., 2019. Virtual reality for health professions education: systematic review and
meta-analysis by the digital health education collaboration. Journal of medical Internet
research. 21(1). p.e12959.
Rasoal and et.al., 2017, December. Clinical ethics support for healthcare personnel: an
integrative literature review. In Hec Forum (Vol. 29, No. 4, pp. 313-346). Springer
Netherlands.
Thompson and et.al.,2021. Risk factors for long COVID: analyses of 10 longitudinal studies and
electronic health records in the UK. MedRxiv.
Ulrich, C.M. and Grady, C. eds., 2018. Moral distress in the health professions. springer.
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