Ethics: Duty to Treat PDF

Conditions can vary from a patient who does not need or does not want urgent help, to a patient who has had a small accident or who is in pain. Contrary to medical patients, dental patients are rarely in a life-threatening situation. In case of a serious accident, patients will be brought to a h...

Conditions can vary from a patient who does not need or does not want urgent help, to a patient who has had a small accident or who is in pain. Contrary to medical patients, dental patients are rarely in a life-threatening situation. In case of a serious accident, patients will be brought to a hospital to visit a maxillofacial surgeon  Dentists’ primary obligations are towards their In some countries, dentists own patients of record. If a dentist has started to and patients do not have a treat a patient, that patient may not be abandoned so that the dentist can treat a new patient, even if relationship at all. the latter patient is in greater need or would benefit When they feel the need to more. seek treatment, patients go to whatever dentist they want.  Requested treatment and the duty to treat -Dentists should refuse when patients ask for treatment that is outside the standard of care, and they can refuse such treatment without violating the autonomy of the patient. -The same is true in the case where the patient seeks treatment that is beyond the dentist abilities. Types of patients who seeks help Patients who do not pay the dentist’s bill can have many reasons: Dissatisfied with the service rendered by the dentist. They may choose to spend their money elsewhere and hope to get away with it. Let us assume the dentist manages to find the reason that a patient is not paying. If the patient is not satisfied, the dentist should talk with him and come to an agreement. This can prevent a claim or a visit to the dental board. Non compliant patient  A peculiar problem arises for the dentist when the patient intervenes in the therapeutic process. Can a dentist refuse to treat a patient if the latter is not compliant with the treatment plan or refuses the indicated therapy outright? A patient has a right to refuse certain treatment options, as well as the right to select an option that is not the best alter- native in the dentist’s mind. “A patient who needs a prosthesis. patient has gagging sensation, he hates the process of making impressions and insists on doing one impression only, instead of the usual two. The dentist’s ability to create a perfectly fitting prosthesis is now undermined, and hence his obligation to seek that perfect outcome is lessened. However, the consequences of the patient’s request are relatively minor, and so the dentist should proceed, although it would be important to clearly inform the patient of the consequences of making only one impression and to make specific note in the record of the patient’s insistence.” Patients who pose a health risk to the dentist  Aggressive patients ‘verbal, physical, and legal’ Patients who cannot come to the dental office Terminating the dentist– patient relationship because of the patient’s conduct One could argue that unreasonable behavior should always be a reason for terminating a relationship, because it is a breach of the mutual trust that is the very basis of the relationship. In this view, a breach of trust is enough for an unconditional termination of the relationship In this view, the dentist can only terminate the relationship because of compelling reasons, and only if he meets certain conditions Some reasons for termination could be ?? - Limiting practice.. he should warn patients, give them enough time to find another practice and, if possible, to help to find a successor. And the dentist has an obligation to give the patient a copy of his records