The ethical imperative in health services governance and management

Increasingly, administrative and biomedical ethical issues affect decision making in health services organizations. Although the ethics of biomedical decision making affect governance and management, this article is limited to administrative ethics: fiduciary duty, conflicts of interest, confidential information, resource allocation, and consent. Those who govern and manage health services organizations face an ethical imperative: They are moral agents with an independent duty to protect patients and further their interests. This duty is separate from any existing between care givers--such as physicians--and patients. It may complement other relationships, but it is always present. This imperative will become more difficult to attain. The potential conflict between economic and patient interests lies close to the surface in the patient care relationship, and maintaining it undoubtedly will be exacerbated by competitive pressures. The ethical implications of this conflict for those who govern and manage health services organizations are enormous.