Ethical Principles in Healthcare

What does the word autonomy mean?

According to Beauchamp and Childress, autonomous people can still make decisions. For example, a patient who is confined in a mental institution may be able to make decisions about eating certain foods or talking to specific relatives.

According to Dworkin, autonomy involves controlling basic desires or preferences through higher-level preferences.

What are the four key principles that make up the "principlism" approach to Bioethics?

List five practical implications of respect for autonomy in medical practice.

What are the three threshold elements of informed consent?

The tension of integrity is a protective function of informed consent.

Verbal consent is an example of implied consent.

Informed consent is always required, even in emergency situations.

Informed consent is merely a ritual or formality of overlooking the content of a form that details the risks.

What are two ways that the principle of paternalism can be applied in medical situations?

What are the two types of advance directives?

What two important roles does the principle of beneficence highlight?

Ideal beneficence is when a person does good for others, even if it means exceeding ordinary moral obligation.

According to Beauchamp and Childress, we are morally obligated to help others in all situations, even if it will result in a severe personal sacrifice.

List three practical applications of the principle of beneficence in healthcare.

What are the four criteria for determining negligence?

What does the maxim "primum non nocere" mean?

The principle of nonmaleficence is stricter than the principle of beneficence.

Which of the following could be considered examples of the common moral conviction of "negligence?" (Select all that apply)

Withholding treatment and withdrawing treatment are examples of what is ethically justified?

If death is imminent, continuing treatment is obligatory.

Ordinary treatment refers to the provision of necessities that are often considered essential for preserving a patient's life, such as intravenous fluids, nasogastric tube feedings, and indwelling catheters.

Extraordinary treatment is always considered morally justified.

Deliberately killing someone versus allowing someone to die are considered the same.

The principle of justice can be considered as the most significant ethical principle of all.

What are the three material principles of justice regarding the allocation of services? Briefly describe each.

Which type of justice aims to achieve fair and equitable distribution of rights, responsibilities, and resources?

The utilitarian approach to justice emphasizes individual rights and liberties.

The egalitarian approach to justice typically recommends providing more health care services to the wealthy than to the poor.

The libertarian approach to justice argues that the government should not interfere in the allocation of healthcare services and that individuals should have the liberty to make their own choices.

Communitarianism prioritizes individual rights over the good of the community.

The "macro" level of allocation focuses on determining who receives specific services, while the "micro" level focuses on how much the state spends on healthcare in total.

What are the two main conflicting directions that drive one's moral intuition in terms of allocation?

The act of "letting die" is always morally wrong and should be avoided.

The "do-notResuscitate" (DNR) order is a complex issue that requires deliberation and careful consideration by both the healthcare provider and all involved parties, including the family.

Ordinary treatment always needs to be provided to dying patients, even if it only prolongs their suffering.

It is generally recommended to have a formal discussion with the family of a patient who has a DNR order.

If a nurse is unsure about a doctor's prescription, they are ethically obligated to question the doctor and seek clarification.

It is ethically acceptable for a nurse to follow a doctor's order even if they believe it is wrong.

If a patient is unable to provide consent due to a medical condition, it is ethical to withhold treatment without the consent of a lawful surrogate or proxy, even if the patient's wishes are unknown.

When a patient is unconscious and in need of immediate medical attention in an emergency room setting, the principle of beneficence overrides the principle of patient autonomy.

The principle of nonmaleficence supports the idea that nurses should be primarily focused on preventing harm to their individual patients, rather than considering the well-being of the community as a whole.