The Ground of Professional Ethics

Professionals are increasingly under pressure both to be responsive to their clients and to deny them certain services which neither they nor the public purse can afford. Balancing these pressures while maintaining a relationship of mutual trust with clients poses a difficult challenge to doctors, lawyers, the clergy and other professionals. Daryl Koehn argues for a new kind of professional/client relationship, in which the professional is not bound by the whims of the client but by a promise to serve the particular good (eg health, salvation, social justice etc), which both parties must wish to promote. Only through taking on this role can professionals preserve their self-esteem and moral legitimacy. "The Ground of Professional Ethics" also examines the difficult practical questions: What can clients justifiably expect from professionals? When may service to a client be legitimately terminated? When can client confidences be broken? Should professionals resist political pressure? "The Ground of Professional Ethics" aims to help professionals and the public to re-think what professionals owe clients, and also explores the responsibilities of the clients to the professionals.