Clinical Ethics: A Practical Approach To Ethical Decisions In Clinical Medicine
The following is an excerpt from the book Clinical Ethics: A Practical Approach to Ethical Decisions in Clinical Medicine, 4th Edition. Copyright permission to reproduce this excerpt has been generously granted by McGraw-Hill. We encourage you to read further in this useful resource book, available now in the revised 7th Edition (2010). . Albert R. Jonsen, Mark Siegler, and William J. Winslade, Clinical Ethics: A Practical Approach to Ethical Decisions in Clinical Medicine, 4th edition. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., .
INTRODUCTION:
Case Analysis in Clinical Ethics
Clinical ethics is a practical discipline that provides a structured approach to assist physicians in identifying, analysing and resolving ethical issues in clinical medicine. …show more content…
He was a popular, athletic young man, just discharged from the Air Force, after serving as a fighter pilot in Viet Nam. He worked in a real estate business with his father (who was also injured in the explosion and died on the way to the hospital). Before his accident, Dax 's quality of life was excellent. During the course of medical care, he endured excruciating pain and profound depression. After the accident, even with the best of care, he was confronted with significant physical deficits, including notable disfigurement, blindness and limitation of activity. At some stage in his illness, Dax had the capacity to determine what quality of life he wished for himself. However, in the early weeks of his hospitalization, he was probably mentally incapacitated at the time critical decisions had to be made. When he was, others would have had to make certain "quality of life" decisions on his behalf. Was the prospect for return to a normal or even acceptable life so poor that no reasonable person would choose to live? Who should make such decisions? What values should guide them? The meaning and import of such considerations must be clarified in any clinical ethical
INTRODUCTION:
Case Analysis in Clinical Ethics
Clinical ethics is a practical discipline that provides a structured approach to assist physicians in identifying, analysing and resolving ethical issues in clinical medicine. …show more content…
He was a popular, athletic young man, just discharged from the Air Force, after serving as a fighter pilot in Viet Nam. He worked in a real estate business with his father (who was also injured in the explosion and died on the way to the hospital). Before his accident, Dax 's quality of life was excellent. During the course of medical care, he endured excruciating pain and profound depression. After the accident, even with the best of care, he was confronted with significant physical deficits, including notable disfigurement, blindness and limitation of activity. At some stage in his illness, Dax had the capacity to determine what quality of life he wished for himself. However, in the early weeks of his hospitalization, he was probably mentally incapacitated at the time critical decisions had to be made. When he was, others would have had to make certain "quality of life" decisions on his behalf. Was the prospect for return to a normal or even acceptable life so poor that no reasonable person would choose to live? Who should make such decisions? What values should guide them? The meaning and import of such considerations must be clarified in any clinical ethical