Student name

Capella University

NURS-FPX4000

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Applying Ethical Principles

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The health care professionals make their choices on ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice that aim at keeping the well-being of the patients while respecting their rights (Ferrara, 2024). In particular, the principles can be most effectively used to fight the stigma of mental illness since it can still deprive people with it of care or effective treatment due to social prejudice. During this assignment, I will outline the way these concepts of ethics are applicable to a case of mental illness, stigmatization, and patient care improvement to make healthcare more accommodating and supportive.

Autonomy Plays a Role in Mental Health Stigma

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The concept of autonomy is also gaining significance in addressing the issue of stigma surrounding mental illness because it will give patients the independence to make treatment decisions and seek help without fear of discrimination (Lyon and Mortimer-Jones, 2020). Mental patients assisted to exercise autonomy are more likely to be involved in treatment, be it through therapy, medication, or lifestyle modification. The stigma of society will contribute to the feelings of helplessness and exclusion, which will be relieved by the empowerment to make decisions influencing their care.

What is more, when individuals can communicate with their health professionals or in a culture where they can communicate about their mental health problems without any fear, they might address the stigma in society and advocate for themselves in a more constructive way (Lyon and Mortimer-Jones, 2020). This empowerment allows more people to feel that there is something good within them and need to seek help and reduce the humiliation of a mental illness.

Beneficence Plays a Role in Mental Health Stigma

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The idea of beneficence is relevant in the fight against the stigma of mental illness since, when applied, it enables actions in the best interests of those who are mentally ill. The health professionals, educators, and policymakers can be benevolent by creating welcoming environments that would make the individuals feel comfortable to seek treatment without being ashamed of it (Pauly et al., 2021). One of them is that when the professionals dealing with mental illness are empathetic, not judgmental, and can challenge the social myths about mental illness, they reduce the antecedents of the stigma. This, further, besides improving the mental health outcomes of the individuals, creates a culture of safety and trust in the health care system.

Nonmaleficence Plays a Role in Mental Health Stigma

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Nonmaleficence is essential in treating the stigma of mental illness because healthcare providers must not harm the patient by discriminating or subjecting the individual to a negative attitude. Treating patients with respect and not judging them, mental health professionals help to reduce the emotional and psychological harm that stigma is likely to have (Dunne et al., 2022). One such thing is not to use language and behavior that strengthen the stereotypes or stigma, which will positively influence patients to feel safe and honored during care seeking. The discussion of nonmaleficence over other factors by health care providers has resulted in the fact that individuals with mental conditions are no longer patiently discriminated against by the rest of society, which is proving to contribute to the creation of healthier mental disorders and the elimination of the barriers between an ailing individual and seeking treatment.

Justice Plays a Role in Mental Health Stigma

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Justice is also necessary by eliminating the stigma of mental illness by being able to access the treatment, assistance, and resources equally to persons with mental health problems. This implies that all people must be treated fairly and with dignity regardless of their mental illnesses (Bhugra et al., 2022). In this case, as an illustration, as the policies are applied, assurance of the same expenditure of health care spending, on physical medical care as opposed to mental health care, the discrimination that might occur is reduced, and individuals with mental illnesses can access the treatment they need without any hindrances. Healthcare justice entails promoting the rights of an individual, his/her treatment as an equal to physically ill individuals, his/her promotion to seek assistance, and active attempts to eliminate the stigma of the society that made him/her not seek assistance, but put him/her first before his/her needs (Bhugra et al., 2022).

Role of Biases in Mental Health Stigma

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Prejudice plays a significant part in the perpetuation of stigma of mental illness, and it has mainly impacted attitude and the treatment options chosen by the healthcare providers. These biases may be what underlie notions that mentally ill individuals are of inferior quality, less competent, and more dangerous than their physically ill counterparts (Gopal et al., 2021). Such prejudices can be unethical in their morality, such as the morality of beneficence or justice, by allowing the providers to deny effective care to, or provide poor care to, mentally ill people indirectly.

As an illustration, a provider will not feel as motivated to deal with a patient with an abnormality of depression or anxiety as he/she would with a patient with an identifiable physical disorder. This can cause harm to the mental health of the patient and halt his/her recovery (Gopal et al., 2021). Controlling biases is the key to upholding the ethical principles of behavior, as all patients should be treated equally and with respect and dignity, and provided with the highest care standards, regardless of their mental health condition.

Importance of Understanding Ethics in Wellness, Disease Prevention, as it relates to Mental Health Stigma

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Ethical sense is an important part of Wellness and Disease Prevention, particularly in the context of the question concerning the stigma of mental illness. Ethical principles that are associated with the support of people to maintain their mental health include autonomy, beneficence, and justice when referring to Wellness. The health care professionals will be more equipped to offer non-judgmental care that is compassionate once they are made aware of the role of stigma in mental health, and this will make the individual more concerned about their mental health (Javed et al., 2021).

As an indicator, the stigma that people do not seek help because they do not take care of themselves, and they are not aware of what mental health is, can be minimized with the help of promoting mental health awareness by means of community-based programs. The society of ethical healthcare professionals can create a condition in which patients can control the freedom to determine their mental status, which in turn assists them to enjoy greater success in situations where the stigma has been eradicated.

The ethics knowledge in Disease Prevention will ensure that fairness, respect, and dignity are given to the mentally ill patients. Stigma can also deprive an individual of access to early intervention or preventive care, or aggravate his/her conditions over time. Having the ethical factor in the disease prevention strategies, health workers can build an inclusive program as it aims to decrease the stigma and inspire people to complete preventive care regarding mental health (Carras et al., 2020).

Using the example, a problem that would be detected in primary care by way of mental health screening in ethical practices of confidentiality and non-discrimination would be detected before it advances to severe mental illnesses. This aligns with the ethical factors as it is a proactive action that will promote equity in the medical services and dispensing of care to all individuals, including people with mental illnesses who need the service to avoid illness and keep themselves healthy.

Conclusion

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The stigma of mental illnesses should be eradicated with the help of the ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice to create an all-encompassing and supportive healthcare environment. The stigmatization barriers to mental health outcomes may be reduced through the empowerment of individuals to make informed decisions, provision of caring care, harm prevention, and equitable access to treatment. The awareness and the application of these ethical ideas help not only guarantee the care delivery, but also establish a culture of respect, dignity, and fairness, according to which individuals with mental illnesses will have no fear in addressing specialists. This whole person perspective is very critical towards wellness and preventing worsening of mental health, which ultimately improves the well-being of human beings and society.