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Biomedical subjects

Albert R Jonsen

Publications and source records attributed to Albert R Jonsen.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Nontherapeutic research with children: the Ramsey versus McCormick debate.

The ethical debates about use of children as research subjects are stimulated by reports of actual events. These reports often distort the essential ethical arguments about how and when use of children can be justified. The essential arguments were clearly formulated in an historic debate between two ethicists, Paul Ramsey and Richard McCormick. Their debate laid the foundations for the recommendations of the National Commission for Protection of Human Subjects that have become the current federal regulations governing research with children.

Bioethics↗
PubMed2006

"Life is short, medicine is long": reflections on a bioethical insight.

The famous first aphorism of Hippocrates, "Life is short, the art is long" was long considered a perfect summary of medical ethics. Modern physicians find the words impossible to understand. But it can be interpreted as a fundamental insight into the ethical problems of modern medicine. The technology of modern scientific medicine can sustain life, even when life is losing its vitality. How should decisions be made about the use of technology and by whom? This is the incessant question of modern medical ethics.

Bioethics↗
PubMed2002

Ethical considerations of complementary and alternative medical therapies in conventional medical settings.

Increasing use of complementary and alternative medical (CAM) therapies by patients, health care providers, and institutions has made it imperative that physicians consider their ethical obligations when recommending, tolerating, or proscribing these therapies. The authors present a risk-benefit framework that can be applied to determine the appropriateness of using CAM therapies in various clinical scenarios. The major relevant issues are the severity and acuteness of illness; the curability of the illness by conventional forms of treatment; the degree of invasiveness, associated toxicities, and side effects of the conventional treatment; the availability and quality of evidence of utility and safety of the desired CAM treatment; the level of understanding of risks and benefits of the CAM treatment combined with the patient's knowing and voluntary acceptance of those risks; and the patient's persistence of intention to use CAM therapies. Even in the absence of scientific evidence for CAM therapies, by considering these relevant issues, providers can formulate a plan that is clinically sound, ethically appropriate, and targeted to the unique circumstances of individual patients. Physicians are encouraged to remain engaged in problem-solving with their patients and to attempt to elucidate and clarify the patient's core values and beliefs when counseling about CAM therapies.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed2002

Cell wars.

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Ethics, Research↗
PubMed1995

Casuistry: an alternative or complement to principles?

Casuistry is a traditional method of interpreting and resolving moral problems. It focuses on the circumstances of particular cases rather than on the application of ethical theories and principles. After a brief history of casuistry, the method is explained and its relation to theory and principles is discussed.

Bioethics↗
PubMed1994

Theological ethics, moral philosophy, and public moral discourse.

The advent and growth of bioethics in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s precipitated an era of public moral discourse, that is, the deliberate attempt to analyze and formulate moral argument for use in public policy. The language for rational discussion of moral matters evolved from the parent disciplines of moral philosophy and theological ethics, as well as from the idioms of a secular, pluralistic world that was searching for policy answers to difficult bioethical questions. This article explores the basis and content of the unique contributions of both theological and philosophical ethics to the development of public moral discourse.

Advisory Committees↗
PubMed1993

Scofield as Socrates.

Well, as Socrates exclaimed, "By the dog, Gorgias, there will be a great deal of discussion before we get to the truth of all this." In the course of that discussion, we will find that Mr. Scofield does ask many very pertinent questions about the nature and teaching of ethics. Each question is worth examining in itself. But somewhere along the line, he has wandered into exaggerations, rhetoricities, and illogicisms that make it difficult to "get to the truth of all this." If we were being truly Socratic, I would test each assertion and allow him to respond in turn, and he could question me. In so doing, we might elucidate the ideas behind ethics consultation and evaluate its worth. We might then learn, as Socrates would have us learn, how much we do not know. We might also learn, as Socrates desired, how to pursue the elusive answers. Unfortunately, in this essay, Scofield fails as Socrates.

Decision Making↗
PubMed1993

Doctor to doctor:

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Advance Directives↗
PubMed1986

AIDS and ethics.

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AIDS Serodiagnosis↗