Verified Document

Analyzing The Ethical And Legal Issues Depicted In The Movie John Q Essay

¶ … Ethical and Legal Issues Depicted in the Movie, John Q? From beginning to end, "John Q" is a movie full of moral and ethical quandaries. It offers viewers a clear glimpse at private and public entities' obligation to engage in ethically-right routine decision-making for their respective communities. John lacked the required health insurance to cover his son's cardiac surgery expenses. The Hope Memorial Hospital, electing not to play a "Good Samaritan," does not agree to perform the surgery without being assured payment. Thus, John is faced with the moral quandary of accepting fate and readying for the funeral of his son (as suggested by Rebecca Payne, the Hospital's administrator), or somehow procuring the money needed. Given the urgency of his son's case, the second option is rather daunting. Ultimately, John ends up holding emergency room patients and staff members hostage, to ensure his son is catered to (Bangura, 2011).

Another dilemma John faces later on in the movie is two emergency room patients -- one does not know how to speak English, while the other -- an expectant mother -- is in critical need for hostages in the course of negotiation, the former faces a dilemma -- leave the women to die or concede and release them (Bangura, 2011).
Describe John Q's decision-making process and identify the various factors and outside stakeholders who influenced his decisions. Which of these influences appears to have had the strongest impact?

John's role as a father leaves him morally obliged to go all-out for his child's welfare. He is duty-bound to make his son's life better. From this perspective, one can conclude that John's response to his ethical obligation to his son is acceptable. He gives no consideration to the consequences but carries out his plan with a motive that is purely guided by familial responsibility. He gives priority to human life's sanctity and his parental role over everything else. His self-sacrificing act of deciding to give his son his own heart proves how much he values his role and responsibility. Under the circumstances, John's decision is only rational (as well as condonable). As necessitated by deontology, laws and actions should apply universally. An adherent should be ready to receive as well as give. John was asking nothing more from people than he himself was ready to offer…

Sources used in this document:
Bibliography

Bangura, G. B.-L. (2011, August 28). ETHICAL ANALYSIS OF "JOHN Q" MOVIE. Retrieved from Bailama Dynasty: http://bailamadynasty.blogspot.com/2011/08/ethical-analysis-of-john-q-movie.html

HubPages. (2015, December 26). John Q Analysis: Ethical & Moral Dilemmas. Retrieved from hubpages.com: http://hubpages.com/entertainment/Morality-and-Ethics-in-John-Q
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

The Ethical Dilemma of John Q
Words: 1425 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Ethical Analysis: John QThe film John Q (2002) depicts the struggle of a father whose 9-year-old child needs a heart transplant the family cannot afford, and who lacks the insurance coverage to ensure his child can have this lifesaving surgery. John Q. Archibald holds an entire hospital staff hostage (including its administrator, physicians, patients, as well as the ER staff) to demand Michael is put back on the transplant list

Children, Grief, and Attachment Theory
Words: 22384 Length: 75 Document Type: Term Paper

Figure 1 portrays three of the scenes 20/20 presented March 15, 2010. Figure 1: Heather, Rachel, and Unnamed Girl in 20/20 Program (adapted from Stossel, 2010). Statement of the Problem For any individual, the death of a family member, friend, parent or sibling may often be overwhelming. For adolescents, the death of person close to them may prove much more traumatic as it can disrupt adolescent development. Diana Mahoney (2008), with the

Spotlighting Samplings 4 Qualitative Research Choices 6
Words: 16532 Length: 60 Document Type: Research Paper

Spotlighting Samplings 4 Qualitative Research Research Choices 6 the Phenomenology Method The Ethnography Method DEPTH Four Qualitative Approach Comparison Strengths and Critiques of Case Studies "A research design indicates the full research process from conceptualization of the research problem, generation of data, analysis and interpretation of findings, and dissemination of results" (Magilvy & Thomas, 2009, What and Why… Section, ¶ 4). The Question of Interest What type of research design should the researcher use? To answer the study's critical research

Alcohol Drinking Among Young Jews
Words: 23454 Length: 3 Document Type: Dissertation

Parenting Style Influence on Excess Alcohol Intake Among Jewish Youth Clinical Psychology The health hazards that are associated with adolescent alcohol use are well documented, and there is growing recognition among policymakers and clinicians alike that more needs to be done to address this public health threat. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of different parenting styles on alcohol consumption levels among Jewish college students in the United

Alcohol Drinking Among Young Jews
Words: 23424 Length: 4 Document Type: Dissertation

Parenting Style Influence on Excess Alcohol Intake Among Jewish Youth Clinical Psychology The health hazards that are associated with adolescent alcohol use are well documented, and there is growing recognition among policymakers and clinicians alike that more needs to be done to address this public health threat. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of different parenting styles on alcohol consumption levels among Jewish college students in the United

Underage Drinking in Certain Minorities
Words: 23424 Length: 4 Document Type: Research Proposal

Parenting Style Influence on Excess Alcohol Intake Among Jewish Youth Clinical Psychology The health hazards that are associated with adolescent alcohol use are well documented, and there is growing recognition among policymakers and clinicians alike that more needs to be done to address this public health threat. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of different parenting styles on alcohol consumption levels among Jewish college students in the United

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now