Free Nursing Dissertations - (airedale Nhs Trust 1993) The Ethical Point Here Is That One Is Not Making A
(Airedale NHS Trust 1993) The ethical point here is that one is not making a decision that the patient must die, one is making the decision that they have given permission that treatment can ethically stop. (Wade D 2001)
There are a number of guiding ethical principles that we also have to consider. The first is Non-maleficence or literally no malice, which is an extension of Hippocrates’s famous dictum first do no harm (Carrick P 2000). In its broadest ethical application it means that the healthcare professional must avoid any form of potential harm to the patient. Legally it actually means considerably more than that and we shall discuss that aspect later on in this essay.
The Principle of Beneficence is commonly quoted as The first principle of morality. It is a difficult definition as it is a doing of good or goodness. The actual definition of these two qualities is defined by the circumstances rather than the act itself. There is an implied expectation of beneficence when a patient gives consent. (McMillian J 2005)
The third ethical principle that we should consider is that of Deontology. This also has a bearing on consent issues as it implies that the healthcare professional is making a decision about treatment based solely on the consideration of their duty towards the patient and not on any other subsidiary issues such as cost or expediency. (Tännsjö T 2005)
Underpinning all of these other principles is the principle of autonomy. This requires that the patient be allowed to determine what they consider is right for them in their current circumstances without being coerced by any outside influence (Mill JS 1982)
In specific consideration of the case in question, the ethics involved suggest that the surgeon was in breach of his duty of non-maleficence because by his direct action he clearly did the patient harm. The duty of beneficence is more complex as the surgeon clearly believed that what he was doing was in the patient’s best interests, but the principle of deontology is clearly compromised as the surgeon made the decision on the grounds of expediency.
Legal discussion.
We have considered the ethical dimension of the principle of Non-Maleficience earlier on in the essay but we also need to consider its broader legal applications. In legal terms it means the application of a duty of care to the patient. Not simply avoiding, but actually taking positive steps to avoid any form of sexual, financial or emotional harm or any other form of exploitation in the widest sense. We should also note that this concept also has implications for the healthcare professional directly as it can be invoked if the professional is incompetent or providing services while he is unfit to do so whether it is due to illness, alcohol or drugs. This principle of non-maleficience is implicit in the legal definitions of consent. (Dimond. B.
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