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Sweet, William. [1]. 'Whose Dignity is it Anyway? Lecture presented as part of the 'Breakfast on the Hill' series, Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Canada, May 2007.
Dan Egonsson, followed by Roger Wertheimer, argued that while it is conventional for people to equate dignity with 'being human' (Egonsson's 'Standard Attitude', Wertheimer's 'Standard Belief'), people generally also import something other than mere humanness to their idea of dignity. [29] [30] Egonsson suggested that an entity must be both human and alive to merit an ascription of dignity, while Wertheimer states "it is not a definitional truth that human beings have human status." Rodriguez, Philippe-André (2015). "Human dignity as an essentially contested concept". Cambridge Review of International Affairs. 28 (2): 3. doi: 10.1080/09557571.2015.1021297. S2CID 144462238. Dignity also tends to connote the features of self-contained serenity, of a certain inward and toned-down but yet translucent and perceptible power of self-assertion: the dignified type of character is chary of emphatic activity rather than sullenly passive, perhaps impassive rather than impassible, patient rather than anxiously defensive, and devoid but not incapable of aggressiveness [8] Violations [ edit ] Categories [ edit ] Human dignity is a central consideration of Christian philosophy [20] [33] [34] The Catechism of the Catholic Church insists the "dignity of the human person is rooted in his or her creation in the image and likeness of God." "All human beings," says the Church, "in as much as they are created in the image of God, have the dignity of a person." The catechism says, "The right to the exercise of freedom belongs to everyone because it is inseparable from his or her dignity as a human person." [35] The Catholic Church's view of human dignity is like Kant's insofar as it springs from human agency and free will, [21] with the further understanding that free will in turn springs from human creation in the image of God. [36]In ordinary modern usage, the word denotes " respect" and " status", and it is often used to suggest that someone is not receiving a proper degree of respect, or even that they are failing to treat themselves with proper self-respect. There is also a long history of special philosophical use of this term. However, it is rarely defined outright in political, legal, and scientific discussions. International proclamations have thus far left dignity undefined, [5] [6] and scientific commentators, such as those arguing against genetic research and algeny, cite dignity as a reason but are ambiguous about its application. [7] This study had some methodological limitations. First, most participants were women. This may have resulted in a female perspective of dignity-conserving interventions. A male perspective might have added other aspects. Alternatively, women generally live longer than men [ 64], and, as NHs foremost are populated by women, a female perspective is important. Second, social desirability bias must always be considered in studies [ 65]. This may have influenced residents to respond in a way they believed more appropriate or socially acceptable, resulting in the withholding of true thoughts and feelings. To reduce this, the first author spent a considerable amount of time in the NH, in fact, 170 h over six months, which provided a rich amount of data and a great depth of understanding of the aspects that influence the residents’ dignity. Third, data collection took place in 2017. This might appear to be a limitation; nevertheless, the conditions concerning staff and median length of stay in NHs in Sweden are similar today. Further, the insights revealed here add valuable knowledge to inform how dignity is embodied in NH practice. Recommendations for practice Nordenfelt L. The varieties of dignity. Health Care Anal. 2004;12:69–81; discussion 83–89. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:HCAN.0000041183.78435.4b To help residents, assistant nurses were observed to call for physiotherapists when needed and they also performed regular exercise sessions at the ward. Dignity-conserving repertoire
They also enjoyed seeing objects they had crafted with their hands. The observations showed that assistant nurses respected residents by listening when they signalled their need to talk, by asking for residents’ preferences on care, and by doing appreciated things, such as nail care. But they were also observed to neglect highly valued aspects of residents’ lives, e.g., when denying them help with their plants. Cairns D, Williams V, Victor C, Richards S, Le May A, Martin W, Oliver D. The meaning and importance of dignified care: findings from a survey of health and social care professionals. BMC Geriatr. 2013;13:28. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2318-13-28 We all want this kind of personalised care for our families. But all families are different. Stories for discussion International Council of Nurses. The ICN code of ethics for nurses. 2021. https://www.icn.ch/publications. Accessed 14 Mar 2022.Grace, Daniel and Don – as well as their carers – all demand a response that is thoroughly personal to them. At the same time, they are looking for what a modern social care system can offer: an approach to care that is positive, respects their strengths and experience, understands their rights and supports their independence. How can social care managers and workers develop a culture in the workplace that supports this approach? Better life in the community Guidance on human rights for commissioners of home care (Equality and Human Rights Commission, 2013) Both absolute and relative poverty are violations of human dignity, although they also have other significant dimensions, such as social injustice. [9] Absolute poverty is associated with overt exploitation and connected to humiliation (for example, being forced to eat food from other people's garbage), but being dependent upon others to stay alive is a violation of dignity even in the absence of more direct violations. Relative poverty, on the other hand, is a violation because the cumulative experience of not being able to afford the same clothes, entertainment, social events, education, or other features of typical life in that society results in subtle humiliation; social rejection; marginalization; and consequently, a diminished self-respect. Suffering from illness, disability, and old age may lead to a wide range of existential, spiritual, and psychosocial concerns, while experiencing dignity seems to mitigate suffering in end-of-life illness and death [ 29]. Nevertheless, respecting dignity might be a challenge because it is not explicitly clear what this requires in clinical practice.