Journal of medical ethics
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Journal of medical ethics · Dec 2014
Which values are important for patients during involuntary treatment? A qualitative study with psychiatric inpatients.
Involuntary hospital treatment is practised throughout the world. Providing appropriate treatment in this context is particularly challenging for mental health professionals, who frequently face ethical issues as they have to administer treatments in the absence of patient consent. We have explored the views of 59 psychiatric patients who had been involuntarily admitted to hospital treatment across England. ⋯ Patients also valued non-paternalistic and respectful behaviour from staff. Consideration of patient values in moral deliberation is important to manage ethical conflicts. Even in the ethically challenging context of involuntary treatment, there are possibilities to increase patient freedoms, enhance their sense of safety and convey respect.
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Journal of medical ethics · Dec 2014
Comparative StudyA trial of a reproductive ethics and law curriculum for obstetrics and gynaecology residents.
Prior ethics educational interventions for residents have shown improvement in confidence and knowledge scores strictly in an internal medical resident population. Baseline knowledge and attitudes regarding reproductive ethics and law of obstetrics and gynaecology (ob/gyn) residents were assessed via a survey. Then, after completion of a 20-h curriculum for the residents, the residents were resurveyed in order to assess impact of the curriculum. ⋯ Despite the importance placed on reproductive ethics and law by survey respondents including its impact on their clinical practices, there continues to be a deficiency in formal ethics education in ob/gyn. Our curriculum demonstrated both improvement in confidence as well as knowledge of residents towards issues of reproductive ethics and law.
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Journal of medical ethics · Dec 2014
Non-physician-assisted suicide in The Netherlands: a cross-sectional survey among the general public.
In The Netherlands, approximately 45% of patients' requests for euthanasia are granted by a physician. After a rejected request, some patients approach non-physicians and ask them for assistance in suicide. Recently, a non-physician who assisted his mother's suicide was declared guilty without punishment. ⋯ The Dutch general public consider non-physician-assisted suicide in some specific cases a tolerable alternative for patients with a rejected request for physician-assisted dying if the assistance is limited to the provision of information. However, the majority do not support the legalisation of non-physician-assisted suicide.
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Journal of medical ethics · Dec 2014
Comparative StudyEvaluation of the work of hospital districts' research ethics committees in Finland.
The main task of research ethics committees (RECs) is to assess research studies before their start. In this study, 24 RECs that evaluate medical research were sent questionnaires about their structure and functions. The RECs were divided into two separate groups: those working in university hospital districts (uRECs) and those in central hospital districts (non-uRECs). ⋯ Simple measures were used for qualitative analysis of the work of RECs that evaluate medical research. These showed differences between RECs. This may be helpful in establishing an ethics committee network in a research field or administrational area.