SCENARIO
You are a sales representative for a medical device company that manufactures artificial joints. Your company has developed an artificial knee joint that is less expensive than the competition and will dramatically reduce healing time for patients. However, it is also known to produce a serious and potentially lethal infection in a small percentage of patients. The company refuses to disclose this potential side effect. You feel you have a duty to divulge this issue, but you signed a nondisclosure agreement when you were hired and worry about possible repercussions.
A. Compare the deontological and consequentialist perspectives and how each perspective would approach the dilemma from the scenario.
B. Reflect on your Ethical Lens Inventory (ELI) by doing the following:
- Explain your preferred ethical lens, or what it means to have a center perspective relevant to the ELI.
a. Analyze whether you have the same preferred lens in different settings (e.g., work, personal, social).
- Explain both your primary values and classical virtue(s) from the ELI.
a. Compare two primary values and one classical virtue from part D2 individually with three of the top five values from the Clarifying Your Values exercise.
- Describe one of the following from the ELI: your blind spot, risk, double standard, or vice.
a. Discuss three steps you can take to mitigate the blind spot, risk, double standard, or vice described in part D3 in order to make better ethical decisions in the future.
Sample Solution
