SEARCH · Search PubMed
Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
A needs analysis survey tool was developed to determine the nature and type of ethics-related activities needed by nurses in a large urban medical center. The survey revealed that nurses' self-assessed need was, first, for staff development and, second, for an ethics consultation service.
A dialogue between virtue and care ethics is formed as a step towards meeting Pellegrino's challenge to create a more comprehensive moral philosophy. It is also a dialogue between nursing and medicine since each practice draws on the Greek Virtue Tradition and the Judeo-Christian Tradition of care differently. In the Greek Virtue Tradition, the point of scrutiny lies in the inner character of the actor, whereas in the Judeo-Christian Tradition the focus is relational, i.e. how virtues are lived out in specific relationships, particularly unequal relationships where vulnerability of one of the members is an issue. In a care ethic relational qualities such as attunement rather than inner qualities are the point of scrutiny. A dialogue between these two traditions makes it possible to consider the relational virtues and skills of openness and responsiveness that are required for a respectful meeting of the other.
The ability to recognize and respond to the ethical dimension of medicine is integral to providing health care that is comprehensive and humane. However, this aspect of medical practice is underemphasized in clinical and academic medicine, despite attempts to devise curricula in this field. This paper examines the origins and consequences of this deficiency through a case history of a Jehovah's Witness who reluctantly accepted a blood transfusion. It emphasizes the ubiquity of the ethical context in medicine and argues that blindness to this context stems from the prevailing scientific and technological paradigm in medicine. Innovations in medical education are called for to enhance health care providers' abilities to appreciate and cope with these complex situations.
The recently published Report of the AHAG on the Operation of NHS Research Ethics Committees (the Warner Report) advocates major reforms of the NHS research ethics committees system. The main implications of the proposed changes and their probable effects on the major stakeholders are described.
Section I discusses the moral status of animals as conceived from several theoretical and ethical perspectives. Though any one perspective might not be finally adequate, the juxtaposition of several ethical positions widens and deepens our understanding of the moral status of animals and of the responsibilities this complex status engenders.
In the context of the continuing debate about how ethics committees in Italy should be structured (see Bulletin 160) Professor Incorvati, from the Comitato Nazionale per la Bioetica in Rome, considers four theoretical models of how such committees may be arranged, and why one in particular looks better placed to face the growing ethical problems that are emerging as a result of current developments in medicine.
The ethical statements which have historically been subscribed to by the dental profession have had the benefit of the patient as their primary goal. Recognition of this goal, and of the education and training of a dentist, has resulted in society affording to the profession the privilege and obligation of self-government. The Association calls upon members of the profession to be caring and fair in their contact with patients. Although the structure of society may change, the overriding obligation of the dentist will always remain the duty to provide quality care in a competent and timely manner. All members must protect and preserve the high standards of oral health care provided to the public by the profession. They must strive to improve the care delivered--through education, training, research, and most of all, adherence to a stringent code of ethics, structured to meet the needs of the patient.
The ethical statements which have historically been subscribed to by the dental profession have had the benefit of the patient as their primary goal. Recognition of this goal, and of the education and training of a dentist, has resulted in society affording to the profession the privilege and obligation of self-government. The Association calls upon members of the profession to be caring and fair in their contact with patients. Although the structure of society may change, the overriding obligation of the dentist will always remain the duty to provide quality care in a competent and timely manner. All members must protect and preserve the high standards of oral health care provided to the public by the profession. They must strive to improve the care delivered--through education, training, research and, most of all, adherence to a stringent code of ethics, structured to meet the needs of the patient.
Nanomedicine plays a prominent role among emerging technologies. The spectrum of potential applications is as broad as it is promising. It includes the use of nanoparticles and nanodevices for diagnostics, targeted drug delivery in the human body, the production of new therapeutic materials as well as nanorobots or nanoprotheses. Funding agencies are investing large sums in the development of this area, among them the European Commission, which has launched a large network for life-sciences related nanotechnology. At the same time government agencies as well as the private sector are putting forward reports of working groups that have looked into the promises and risks of these developments. This paper will begin with an introduction to the central ethical themes as identified by selected reports from Europe and beyond. In a next step, it will analyse the most frequently invoked ethical concerns-risk assessment and management, the issues of human identity and enhancement, possible implications for civil liberties (e.g. nanodevices that might be used for covert surveillance), and concerns about equity and fair access. Although it seems that the main ethical issues are not unique to nanotechnologies, the conclusion will argue against shrugging them off as non-specific items that have been considered before in the context of other biomedical technologies, such as gene therapy or xenotransplantation. Rather, the paper will call on ethicists to help foster a rational, fair and participatory discourse on the different potential applications of nanotechnologies in medicine, which can form the basis for informed and responsible societal and political decisions.
UNLABELLED: Adolescent's sexuality and related reproductive health and rights problems are sensitive issues in Vietnam. Globalisation has had an impact on the lifestyles of young people, and rising numbers of abortion and STI/HIV risks among youth are posing major health concerns in the country. These problems need to be addressed. Midwives belong to a key category of health personnel in Vietnam, whose task it is to promote adolescents' sexual and reproductive health and prevent reproductive ill health. It is important to understand future midwives' perceptions and attitudes in order to improve their education and training programmes. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate Vietnamese midwifery students' values and attitudes towards adolescent sexuality, abortion and contraception and their views on professional preparation. METHODS: A quantitative survey including 235 midwifery students from four different secondary medical colleges in northern Vietnam was carried out in 2003. A qualitative study addressing similar questions was performed and 18 midwifery students were individually interviewed. FINDINGS: Findings revealed a general disapproval of adolescent pre-marital sexual relations and abortion-'an ethics of justice'-but also an empathic attitude and willingness to support young women, who bear the consequences of unwanted pregnancies and social condemnation-'an ethics of care'. Gender-based imbalance in sexual relationships, limited knowledge about reproductive health issues among youth, and negative societal attitudes were concerns expressed by the students. The students saw their future tasks mainly related to childbearing and less to other reproductive health issues, such as abortion and prevention of STI/HIV. CONCLUSION: Midwifery education in Vietnam should encourage value-reflective thinking around gender inequality and ethical dilemmas, in order to prepare midwives to address adolescents' reproductive health needs.
A child has the full right of protection of his/her life by provision of optional medical care. There is a need in paediatrics for better evidence based practice founded on quality research into efficacy and safety of children's medications. To protect the best interests of the child one must balance the ethical demand to do clinical studies with the necessity to avoid doing harm. To achieve this end good clinical practice in paediatric research demands that studies comply with the Declaration of Helsinki, ICH topic E11, EU Directives and other relevant international guidelines. Evident differences in physiology, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics between children of differing ages and between children and adults demand properly constructed and conducted studies that respect the special somatic, emotional and mental needs of children. To justify any research project one must balance the benefit/risk ratio, provide experienced, competent personnel and infracture, obtain adequate informed consent/assent, and have the study evaluated and approved by an ethics committee containing expertise on the rights and needs of children.
Ethical dilemmas are the result of conflicts between potential benefits or harms for two or more competing interests. Therefore, ethical decision-making implies a responsibility to identify those interests, harms, and benefits. For this purpose, researchers have responsibilities to the research, the subjects of research, other researchers, the institution, society, the environment, and self.
1. What is health and health care? Health is a state of physical and mental well-being that facilitates the achievement of individual and societal goals. Good health over a lifetime is the comparative absence of pain and suffering, illness and disease, each of which could prevent people from pursuing their goals. Health care includes those services that provide adequate nutrition and shelter; sanitary, safe, unpolluted living and working conditions; personal medical services; and nonmedical personal and support services. The medical community can best address the area of personal medical services, which includes interventions to prevent disease, minimize morbidity from existing diseases, diagnose and cure illness, relieve pain and suffering, and provide education for the continued promotion of health. Society must also provide health care services such as adequate nutrition, shelter, and education about health care issues, including prevention that could result in reduced expenditures for curative services. 2. Is health care an ethical or legal right? At this time, there is no legal right to universal health care in the United States, although there is a patchwork of limited legislated rights to health care benefits for some citizens. Ethically, there is a right to health care; however, it is a limited right best expressed as a societal obligation to provide care rather than an open-ended individual right to receive any and all health care resources on demand. In restructuring our health care system, our society must identify the values that will serve as the foundation for our health care system. A health care system that stresses societal rather than individual priorities is essential.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
In this article, consultation via the Internet and the use of the Internet as a source of medical information is examined from an ethical point of view. It is argued that important ethical aspects of the clinical interaction, such as dialogue and trust will be difficult to realise in an Internet-consultation. Further, it is doubtful whether an Internet doctor will accept responsibility. However, medical information via the Internet can be a valuable resource for patients wanting to know more about their disease and, thus, it is a means to enhancing their autonomy.
This two part paper takes a look at the ancient institution of apprenticeship. As stated in the introduction to the first part,(1) it regards the conventions of the scheme as having had a positive influence on the morality, legal identity, and professional allegiance of dentists during the ethical development of their profession in the nineteenth century. The first paper looked at the particular application of apprenticeship through the evidence of indentures in the BDA museum. This second paper enlarges on the view that the wider social institution of apprenticeship was at least in part responsible for the development of the ethics of the dental profession.
Everyone, regardless of age, needs love, touch, companionship, and intimacy. The 1.6 million elderly in the 20,000 U.S. nursing homes are not an exception. The literature indicates that nursing home residents continue to have an interest in sexual activity regardless of age. Sexuality, however, is frequently overlooked by physicians and staff working with nursing home residents. Many staff members have only a vague understanding of the sexual needs of the elderly. This results in a perception of residents' sexual interests as behavioral problems rather than expressions of need for love and intimacy. Inappropriate sexual behaviors in the nursing home can create an intense burden for nursing home staff. This article discusses ways to dealing with inappropriate sexual behaviors in long-term care settings and the ethical issues involved.
These guidelines summarize the content of meetings of family caregivers and individuals with dementia of the Alzheimer's type who identified and spoke on ethical issues in dementia care and who engaged in dialogue with an interdisciplinary and interprofessional group of individuals working in the field of Alzheimer's disease. This inductive method begins with attentive listening to the voices of the affected population and family members, in contrast with a theoretical and deductive approach to ethics.
An international ethics review committee, founded seven years ago, has several unusual features: it selects its own members, who are independent of the drug industry; it includes members with no medical or paramedical background, such as lay people and lawyers; and it reviews protocols together with the study's sponsor. Membership of 31 from nine European countries enables frequent meetings and there is a full meeting of the committee every year to review progress and consider policy. Of the first 294 protocols for phase I, II, or III trials reviewed, 37 were admitted outright, 243 were amended (usually during the discussion of the protocol), and 14 were rejected. It is suggested that, to overcome the problem of ethics review in smaller institutions, regional health authorities in Britain might consider establishing similar committees.