THE VALUE OF HEALTH IN HEALTH CARE ETHICS.

Although in the oath of practice of the various health professions it is required that their primary consideration during practice be directed at the health of the patient, the International Code of medical ethics stipulates saving life as the duty of the doctor. In this paper the value of health as against life was examined in the light of professional responsibility. Conceptual analysis of health and value and their moral implications for professional practice was conducted. On the basis of the biology of human development and the theory of the creation of the human being, it was found that whereas health is the dimension of human well-being that ensures life, the value of health lies in the functionality of the individual or the utility of the health of the individual that possesses health and not its exchangeability. When health is considered and seen this way, it means that a sufficient optimum balance of human functioning between external and internal environment is what will be needed to design health policy objectives that can guarantee human well being and position health workers to be seen to be fulfilling their professional oath and calling.