Abstract
It has been said that community psychiatrists and community psychiatry are ethical just by the nature of the work that is done. After all, community psychiatrists and their colleagues choose to work with those that are traditionally underserved: the poor, the minorities, and those with more severe and chronic psychiatric disorders. This fits into what has been called Virtue Ethics, and dates back to Plato and Socrates. This philosophy emphasizes the virtuous character of individuals who have to make choices. That seems good and true as far as it goes. But ethics is never so simple. Even if one chooses to serve the underserved, does one do that competently? Since community psychiatrists often work with other mental healthcare disciplines, do they complement one another? Since mental healthcare providers usually work in an organization, does that organization value quality of care as much as costs of care? Do the needs of those served justify more flexible boundaries of interaction? This chapter seeks to address the ethical quandaries and principles found in community psychiatry.
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Moffic, H.S., Bateman, H. (2012). Ethics for Community Psychiatry: Evidence-Based Policies and Procedures. In: McQuistion, H., Sowers, W., Ranz, J., Feldman, J. (eds) Handbook of Community Psychiatry. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3149-7_50
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