PHLB09H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Side Effect, Sedation, Advance Healthcare Directive
Document Summary
Phlb09 week 4, lecture 4 thursday, september 26, 2013. Refer to questions in the back of each chapter. Many medical decisions dramatically affect the lives of family members, but bioethics tends to focus solely on the interests of the patient. Family may be equally as impacted as the patient. Patient"s in the vulnerable position, but it"s not solely just the patient. Reconceptualising the physician and patient relationship: ethical role of the physician: impartial advisor. Or is the role of the physician unique? (physicians are often unfamiliar with patients and their families, and are trained to pursue medical interests, not as family advocates) If patients cannot shoulder the responsibility, then we should shift away from ethic of patient autonomy . Moreover : even if the patient were completely fair in making the decision, the autonomy of the other family members would have been systematically undercut by the fact that the patient alone decided (79)
