Essay in Ethics in Patients’ Security Privacy and Confidentiality in an Electronic Environment

All ethical questions arise initially out of the human agency and technology due to its capability to augment the human mental and physical powers is the co-conspirator .On July 25, 2011, an Accretive Corporation employee lost an unencrypted laptop containing sensitive information on numerous patients of the Fairview and North Memorial Healthcare providers in Minneapolis.  The purpose of this essay is to discuss ethics involving patients’ security, privacy and confidentiality in a healthcare electronic environment. It was found that an ethical issue may arise whenever one party in pursuit of its goals engages in a behaviour that materially affects the ability of another party to pursue its goals. The guiding principle, is that an agent should choose an act resulting in the greatest common good for the greatest number. Also pursuit of justice should come from fair dealing and right action which are usually based on rules made by the society that should be the same and applied equally for all.