Table 2 Responses to questions on the perception of general ethical conflicts
From: Perception of and attitude toward ethical issues among Korean occupational physicians
Item | All subjects | P value | Specialist | P value | Resident | P value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Specialist | Resident | 〉10 years | ≤10 years | 3rd & 4th-year | 1st & 2nd-year | ||||
(N = 80) | (N = 71) | (N = 35) | (N = 45) | (N = 30) | (N = 41) | ||||
n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | ||||
Have you ever struggled with ethical problems during work? | 0.000 | 0.693* | 0.322 | ||||||
Yes | 73 (91.3) | 45 (63.4) | 31 (88.6) | 42 (93.3) | 21 (70.0) | 24 (58.5) | |||
No | 7 (8.7) | 26 (36.6) | 4 (11.4) | 3 (6.7) | 9 (30.0) | 17 (41.5) | |||
Have you ever felt the necessity of systematic education and training regarding ethical decision-making during work? | 0.016 | 0.5* | 0.065 | ||||||
Yes | 70 (87.5) | 51 (71.8) | 32 (91.4) | 38 (84.4) | 25 (83.3) | 26 (63.4) | |||
No | 10 (12.5) | 20 (28.2) | 3 (8.6) | 7 (15.6) | 5 (16.7) | 15 (36.6) | |||
Do you think that an occupational physician has to have a higher sense of ethics than any other doctor? | 0.024 | 0.487 | 0.271 | ||||||
Yes | 61 (76.3) | 42 (59.2) | 28 (80.0) | 33 (73.3) | 20 (66.7) | 22 (53.7) | |||
No | 19 (23.7) | 29 (40.8) | 7 (20.0) | 12 (26.7) | 10 (33.3) | 19 (46.3) | |||
Do you think it is necessary to have an ethical code for occupational physicians? a | 0.459 | 0.745 | 0.918 | ||||||
Yes | 64 (81.0) | 54 (76.1) | 29 (82.9) | 35 (80.0) | 23 (76.7) | 31 (75.6) | |||
No | 15 (19.0) | 17 (23.9) | 6 (17.1) | 9 (20.0) | 7 (23.3) | 10 (24.4) | |||
What is the area with the most frequent ethical conflict on your work? b | |||||||||
Decision of general health examination | 0 (0) | 4 (5.6) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 4 (9.8) | |||
Decision of occupational health examination | 34 (43.6) | 27 (38.0) | 17 (50.0) | 17 (38.6) | 12 (40.0) | 15 (36.5) | |||
Evaluation for work relatedness | 21 (27.0) | 33 (46.5) | 9 (26.4) | 12 (27.3) | 15 (50.0) | 18 (43.9) | |||
Industrial healthcare management | 12 (15.4) | 2 (2.9) | 4 (11.8) | 8 (18.2) | 2 (6.7) | 0 (0) | |||
Etc. | 11 (14.0) | 5 (7.0) | 4 (11.8) | 7 (15.9) | 1 (3.3) | 4 (9.8) | |||
What is the most frequent object of ethical conflict on your work? | |||||||||
Employee | 32 (40.0) | 34 (47.9) | 13 (37.1) | 19 (42.2) | 16 (53.3) | 18 (43.9) | |||
Employer | 31 (38.8) | 18 (25.4) | 15 (42.9) | 16 (35.6) | 12 (40.1) | 6 (14.6) | |||
Government | 1 (1.1) | 2 (2.7) | 1 (2.9) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (4.9) | |||
Doctor colleague | 4 (5.0) | 6 (8.5) | 1 (2.9) | 3 (6.7) | 1 (3.3) | 5 (12.2) | |||
Paramedics | 3 (3.8) | 3 (4.2) | 1 (2.9) | 2 (4.4) | 1 (3.3) | 2 (4.9) | |||
Etc. | 9 (11.3) | 8 (11.3) | 4 (11.3) | 5 (11.1) | 0 (0) | 8 (19.5) | |||
How do you resolve an ethical conflict that occurs at work? c | |||||||||
Consult with other doctor colleagues | 29 (40.3) | 39 (54.9) | 8 (25.8) | 21 (51.2) | 12 (40.0) | 27 (65.9) | |||
Resolve with personal belief | 34 (47.2) | 19 (26.8) | 17 (54.8) | 17 (41.5) | 8 (26.7) | 11 (26.8) | |||
Consult with healthcare specialist | 3 (4.2) | 5 (7.0) | 3 (9.7) | 0 (0) | 4 (13.3) | 1 (2.4) | |||
Consult with the chief of the related department | 0 (0) | 6 (8.5) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 6 (20.0) | 0 (0) | |||
Refer to the ethical code | 2 (2.7) | 2 (2.8) | 2 (6.4) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (4.9) | |||
Etc. | 4 (5.6) | 0 (0) | 1 (3.3) | 3 (7.3) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | |||