Medical ethics

Medical ethics isdisciplineevaluatingmerits, risks,social concernsactivities infieldmedicine.

Many methods have been suggestedhelp evaluateethics ofsituation. These methods tendintroduce principles that should be thought about inprocessmakingdecision.

Six ofprinciples commonly included are:

• Beneficence - means thatpractitioner should act inbest interest ofpatient. (Salus aegroti suprema lex.)
• Non-maleficence - fromHippocratic Oath, "never do harm".
• Autonomy - means thatpatient should haverightdecide on their treatment. (Voluntas aegroti suprema lex.)
• Justice - concernsdistributionscarce health resources, anddecisionwho gets what treatment.
• Dignity -patient (andperson treatingpatient) should be givenrightdignity.
• Truthfulness -patient should not be lied to,deservesknowwhole truth about their illness.

Principles like thesenot designedgive answers ashowhandleparticular situation,they will often overlap or contradict each other. (For instance, autonomybeneficence clash ifpatient refuseslife-saving blood transfusion.) These principlesintended as guidelines aswhat needsbe considered forparticular issue or situation.

Tablecontents

1 Listtopicsmedical ethics 1.1 Issues around deathdying 1.2 Issues regarding reproductive medicine 1.3 Issues regarding medical research 1.4 Issues regarding distributionutilizationresearch

Listtopicsmedical ethics

Issues around deathdying

• euthanasia, mercy killing, assisted suicide
• final directivesethicsresuscitation andwithdrawallife support

Issues regarding reproductive medicine

• accessibilityabortion
• cloning
• genetic manipulation
• eugenics

Issues regarding medical research

• patient's rights
• animal research
• stem cell research

Issues regarding distributionutilizationresearch

• accessibilityhealth care
• basispriorityorgan transplantation