Command at Sea
In your paper 2-3 PAGES SCHOLARLY REFERENCES(paper only due this week; no presentation!), examine the Case Study for your analysis about professional responsibilities and during this crisis called “Command at Sea.” In teams or partners, discuss the decision possibilities within the case study and create a report of your findings. Be sure to read and understand the case thoroughly.
Pretend that you are the CO (commanding officer) and tell us what you would do and why. In your Qualitative & Quantitative Research Design.response, consider the ethical codes and thinkers views that we have studied this week.Applying the two theories:
Ayn Rand’s Objectivist
moral relativism
CASE STUDY
Never Let a Quiet Watch at Sea Lull You into a False Sense of Security”
A little background on what it means to exercise command at sea:
“Only a seaman realizes to what great extent an entire ship reflects the personality and ability of one individual, her Commanding Officer. To a landsman, this is not understandable, and sometimes it is even difficult for us to comprehend–but it is so!
A ship is a different world in herself, and in consideration of the protracted and distant operations of the fleet units, the Navy must place great power, responsibility and trust in the hands of those leaders chosen for command. In each ship there is one man who, in the hour of emergency or peril at sea, can turn to no other man. There is one who alone is ultimately responsible for the safe navigation, engineering performance, accurate gunfiring, and morale of his ship. He is the Commanding Officer. He is the ship!
This is the most difficult and demanding assignment in the Navy. There is not an instant during his tour as Commanding Officer that he can escape the grasp of command responsibility.
This is a duty which most richly deserves the highest time-honored title of the seafaring world–‘CAPTAIN.'”
Captain Joseph Conrad
Our Case Study:
The weather would be turning bad overnight, but late on a sunny afternoon in gentle seas, the Commanding Officer (the CO) had a fresh cup of coffee in hand and enjoyed what little was left of the day in his designated chair on the bridge. It was an older ship, but she could still perform in an award-winning way, even if she could not land helicopters like the newer ones. They had just secured a helicopter from “flight quarters.” The aircraft carrier had delivered the mail and some repair parts by lowering them by winch while still flying over the stern. The coffee was good, and all was well on board.
Most of the planned work for the day had been accomplished as well, and crewmembers not on watch had some time for themselves. A young seaman was getting his physical fitness training by lifting free weights with friends. Unexpectedly, the restraining collar on the barbell came loose and the weights on that end fell off–the heavy end came straight down on the seaman’s foot and broke some bones. After a quick check by Doc, a senior enlisted Hospital Corpsman, it was clear that the seaman needed a medical evacuation to the aircraft carrier, where higher levels of diagnosis and care were available. The CO would surely not be pleased!
Only the helicopter flight crew was certified to fly after dark, and twilight was coming soon. The seaman’s needs were beyond the capability of the medical staff on board. No further helicopter operations were scheduled for the day. The aircraft carrier was a significant flying time away, and it was unclear whether an unscheduled mission could be completed before dark. The weather conditions would be too bad for flying tomorrow–probably the next day as well. If the flight was to happen, the CO would need to arrange it with the Carrier Air Group Commander right away.
Meanwhile, the injured seaman was in much pain and in significant need of care. He had never flown in a helicopter and was afraid of flying. He had not received the training for being hoisted from the deck into a flying helicopter or training in emergency egress procedures, and the broken bones in his foot were causing lots of pain anyway.
A decision was needed, and there was little time to make it. If the medical evacuation mission were to be conducted, the conditions were less than great. Good advice was to be had from the Corpsman and others in the command, but the final assessment of the risks involved and the decision of what to do would rest with the CO alone. There was nothing else to be done on the ship for the injured seaman except to sedate him.
And the sun was getting lower in the sky . . . quickly.
. Week Six Assignment: Download and read these Ethics Codes Legal Ethics Model code.(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (links to a pdf file) Note from your instructor: The Legal Ethics code is 93 pages long. You do NOT have to read the entire code. Read the “Preamble” and at least the EC #1 and #2. Skim the rest. Lawyers take an entire Law School course on this code, and are required then to take a four hour multiple-choice exam on it to get admitted to the Bar. I want you mainly to see how it differs from the Medical society code of ethics, and how detailed it is. American Medical Association Ethical Code(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. A Sexual Harassment Policy(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Note from your instructor: The Legal Ethics code is 93 pages long. You do NOT have to read the entire code. Read the “Preamble” and at least the EC #1 and #2. Skim the rest. Lawyers take an entire Law School course on this code, and are required then to take a four hour multiple-choice exam on it to get admitted to the Bar. I want you mainly to see how it differs from the Medical society code of ethics, and how detailed it is. We’ll talk about it more in the discussions.
- AMA Principles of Medical Ethics (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
- AMA Code of Medical Ethics Preface & Preamble (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
- Sexual Harassment Policy (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Be sure to listen to the Rand Audio Lecture , and read the Lesson. Complete the Lecture’s interactive exercise. The exercise is part of the Lecture and includes the ethical dilemma for this week’s focus.
Rubric
Case Study Analysis
| Case Study Analysis | ||||
| Criteria | Ratings | Pts | ||
| This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeIntroduction Writer summarizes the case, showing in-depth understanding and a compelling purpose for writing. Introduces possible perspectives to be detailed in the report. |
| 30.0 pts | ||
| This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeAnalysis Quality Both team collaboration and individual critical thought are evident and are clearly and compellingly presented. |
| 40.0 pts | ||
| This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeGrammar, Mechanics, Style, Format, Quality of Thought Grammar refers to correct Standard American Usage, e.g., subject/verb agreement and use of correct parts of speech. Mechanics refers to correct idiomatic usage, e.g., capitalized proper nouns, word choice, and word order. Style (5 pts) refers to dynamic writing, avoiding passive constructions, writing that shows, describes, and compels the reader’s interest. Evident care has been taken in composing; there are few errors, and they do not significantly interfere with meaning. APA format has been followed scrupulously. |
| 30.0 pts | ||
| Total Points: 100.0 | ||||
Answer preview
Every activity at the ship was running smoothly with the anticipation of terrible weather that would strike sooner than later. The seamen who had duties took to performing them while the ones without hovered around the ship waiting for evening. One seaman who was lifting free weights happened to accidentally drop some weights right on his foot and immediately breaking some bones (Dzienkowski, 2017). When the Hospital Corpsman examined him, he realized that he needed extra care that was only available at the aircraft carrier. The carrier was a distance away, and the weather was turning bad very fast. Since the seaman was in pain, we had no option but to sedate him until the weather cleared since the helicopters would lift him to the aircraft carrier safely during good weather (Dzienkowski, 2017)…
(750 words)