I watch Chicago’s WGN news every morning before work. This morning, nearly every minute of the broadcast covered the verdict in former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s trial. The jury convicted Blagojevich of just one count and was hung on 23 other counts including that of trying to sell a senate seat. I’m sure you’ve heard the tapes from the wire taps and perhaps even seen the former governor on Celebrity Apprentice. It’s all very embarrassing for Illinois and with Blagojevich’s predecessor still sitting in prison, the pattern doesn’t bode well for our state.
The homepage of the New York Times today reads “Despite Stains of Blagojevich, Illinois Resists Ethics Reforms.” It’s a reputation. When my sister moved to California, she was surprised that local politicians sought to link their opponents to “corrupt Chicago politics” in campaign advertisements. Sure Barack Obama was an Illinois Senator, but it will take an end to the corruption to save the face of The Land of Lincoln. As the New York Times wrote today, it’s a system that has long been ridiculed and: “That system molded the career of Mr. Blagojevich, as well as that of his predecessor as governor, George Ryan, who is already serving a prison sentence for corruption, and, literally, hundreds of others convicted of public corruption crimes in recent decades.”
As discouraging as the political landscape can be, there is something to be learned from all of this. Ethics is at the core of any profession. Your reputation and your integrity depend upon your decisions each and every day. As doctors, you won’t be making decisions that effect laws and policy, but rather you’ll be making decisions that effect patients’ lives.
Did you know that ASDAnet.org has an ethics page? This is where you can find ASDA’s White Paper on Ethics as well as a SPEC (Student Professionalism and Ethics Club) start up kit. ASDA has a firm stance on ethics and as a future health care professional, so should you.
~Kim Schneider, Assistant Editor
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