Journal of medical ethics
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Journal of medical ethics · Jun 2012
Croatian medical students see academic dishonesty as an acceptable behaviour: a cross-sectional multicampus study.
To provide insights into the students' attitude towards academic integrity and their perspective of academic honesty at Croatian medical schools. ⋯ Cheating is prevalent in Croatian medical schools and academic dishonesty is seen as acceptable behaviour among numerous future Croatian doctors.
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Journal of medical ethics · Jun 2012
Biography Historical ArticleHelping doctors become better doctors: Mary Lobjoit--an unsung heroine of medical ethics in the UK.
Medical Ethics has many unsung heros and heroines. Here we celebrate one of these and on telling part of her story hope to place modern medical ethics and bioethics in the UK more centrally within its historical and human contex.
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Journal of medical ethics · Jun 2012
How family caregivers' medical and moral assumptions influence decision making for patients in the vegetative state: a qualitative interview study.
Decisions on limiting life-sustaining treatment for patients in the vegetative state (VS) are emotionally and morally challenging. In Germany, doctors have to discuss, together with the legal surrogate (often a family member), whether the proposed treatment is in accordance with the patient's will. However, it is unknown whether family members of the patient in the VS actually base their decisions on the patient's wishes. ⋯ Whether or not prior treatment wishes of patients in a VS are respected depends on their applicability, and also on the medical assumptions and moral attitudes of the surrogates. We recommend repeated communication, support for the caregivers and advance care planning.
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Journal of medical ethics · Jun 2012
Testing for sexually transmitted infections in a population-based sexual health survey: development of an acceptable ethical approach.
Population-based research is enhanced by biological measures, but biological sampling raises complex ethical issues. The third British National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (Natsal-3) will estimate the population prevalence of five sexually transmitted infections (STIs) (Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, human papillomavirus (HPV), HIV and Mycoplasma genitalium) in a probability sample aged 16-44 years. The present work describes the development of an ethical approach to urine testing for STIs, including the process of reaching consensus on whether to return results. ⋯ The agreed approach, to perform voluntary anonymous testing with specific consent for five STIs without returning results, was approved by stakeholders and a research ethics committee. Overall, this was acceptable to respondents in developmental piloting; 61% (68 of 111) of respondents agreed to provide a sample. The experiences reported here may inform the ethical decision making of researchers, research ethics committees and funders considering population-based biological sampling.