"One main purpose of medical ethics is to analyze the practice of clinical medicine and related scientific research."
The principles and values governing medical practice, including issues such as patient confidentiality, informed consent, and end-of-life care.
Autonomy: The right of individuals to make their own decisions in medical treatment without coercion or outside influence.
Beneficence: The ethical concept of doing the most good for patients while protecting their rights and well-being.
Nonmaleficence: The obligation to avoid causing harm or injury to patients through medical treatment or research.
Justice: The equitable distribution of medical resources, treatments, and care to all patients without prejudice or discrimination.
Medical confidentiality: The duty of physicians and healthcare providers to protect the privacy and confidentiality of patient information.
Informed consent: The right of patients to understand and make independent choices about medical treatment after being fully informed of the risks, benefits, and alternatives.
End-of-life care: Ethical considerations around palliative care, withdrawing life-sustaining treatment, and euthanasia.
Physician-assisted suicide: The debate around physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients who request it.
Military medical research: Ethical considerations surrounding medical research on military personnel, including informed consent, risk-benefit analysis, and protection of human subjects.
Medical decision-making: Ethical considerations around decision-making for critically ill or injured military personnel, including the use of triage and scarce resources.
Military medical personnel: Ethical considerations for military medical personnel, including their responsibilities to patients and their duty to follow orders.
Medical experimentation: Ethical considerations around conducting medical experiments on military personnel, including the use of placebo controls and informed consent.
Mental health: Ethical considerations around the diagnosis and treatment of mental health conditions in military personnel, including PTSD.
Humanitarian medical missions: Ethical considerations around humanitarian medical missions in conflict zones, including impartiality, neutrality, and the protection of medical personnel.
Autonomy: In the context of Military Sciences, autonomy refers to the ability of unmanned systems to operate without direct human control or intervention.
In the context of Medical Ethics, autonomy refers to the principle that individuals have the right to make decisions about their own medical treatment without external coercion or interference.
Beneficence: Beneficence in Military Sciences and Medical Ethics refers to the ethical principle of actively promoting well-being and taking actions that benefit others.
Non-maleficence: Non-maleficence in Military Sciences and Medical Ethics pertains to the ethical principle of avoiding harm or minimizing potential harm to individuals during military operations and medical interventions.
Justice: Justice in the context of Military Sciences and Medical Ethics refers to the fair and equitable distribution of resources, opportunities, and outcomes, ensuring moral and legal principles guide decision-making and treatment.
Sanctity of Life: Sanctity of Life refers to the ethical principle that all human life is inherently valuable and must be protected and preserved, even in the context of military conflicts and medical decision-making.
Role Fidelity: Role fidelity refers to the ethical obligation of military healthcare professionals to prioritize the welfare of their patients over the interests of the military mission.
Conflicts of Interest: Conflicts of interest in the context of Military Sciences and Medical Ethics refer to situations where an individual's personal interests (financial, professional, or otherwise) may compromise their objectivity or loyalty to the principles and ethics of their profession.
Confidentiality and Privacy: Confidentiality and Privacy in the context of Military Sciences and Medical Ethics involves protecting sensitive information and personal data of individuals to maintain trust, respect their rights, and uphold ethical standards.
Informed Consent: Informed Consent refers to the ethical principle that requires individuals to be fully informed about the risks and benefits of a medical or research intervention before voluntarily giving their permission to participate.
Respect for Privacy and Confidentiality: Respect for privacy and confidentiality in the context of Military Sciences and Medical Ethics involves safeguarding the personal information and maintaining privacy of individuals in order to protect their autonomy and promote trust and ethical practice.
Respect for Patients and Military Volunteers: Respect for Patients and Military Volunteers refers to the ethical principle of ensuring the dignity, autonomy, and well-being of both patients and military volunteers in military medical contexts.
Mitigation of Suffering: Mitigation of Suffering in the context of Military Sciences and Medical Ethics refers to the ethical obligation to minimize physical and psychological distress experienced by individuals in combat or medical settings.
Death and Dying Ethics: Death and Dying Ethics in the context of Military Sciences and Medical Ethics refers to the moral considerations and principles surrounding the handling of death and dying in the military, including the ethical dilemmas faced by healthcare providers in the battlefield and end-of-life care.
Professionalism: Professionalism in Military Sciences and Medical Ethics refers to the adherence to ethical principles, codes of conduct, and standards of proficiency within the respective fields.
Honesty and Truth-telling.: Honesty and truth-telling in Military Sciences and Medical Ethics pertains to the moral obligations and ethical dilemmas faced by military and medical professionals in disclosing accurate and truthful information to patients, colleagues, and the public during times of crisis, conflict, or decision-making.
"These values include the respect for autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, and justice."
"It is important to note that these four values are not ranked in order of importance or relevance."
"Such tenets may allow doctors, care providers, and families to create a treatment plan and work towards the same common goal."
"A conflict may arise leading to the need for hierarchy in an ethical system, such that some moral elements overrule others with the purpose of applying the best moral judgment to a difficult medical situation."
"The Hippocratic Oath, The Declaration of Helsinki, and The Nuremberg Code are well-known and respected documents contributing to medical ethics."
"Roe v. Wade in 1973 marked an important development in medical ethics."
"The development of hemodialysis in the 1960s was an important milestone in the history of medical ethics."
"New techniques for gene editing aiming at treating, preventing and curing diseases raise important moral questions about their applications in medicine and treatments as well as societal impacts on future generations."
"These techniques remain controversial due to their association with eugenics."
"The focus remains on fair, balanced, and moral thinking across all cultural and religious backgrounds around the world."
"The field of medical ethics encompasses both practical application in clinical settings and scholarly work in philosophy, history, and sociology."
"Medical ethics encompasses beneficence, autonomy, and justice as they relate to conflicts such as euthanasia, patient confidentiality, informed consent, and conflicts of interest in healthcare."
"Different cultures implement ethical values differently, sometimes placing more emphasis on family values and downplaying the importance of autonomy."
"This leads to an increasing need for culturally sensitive physicians and ethical committees in hospitals and other healthcare settings."
"Medical ethics is particularly relevant in decisions regarding involuntary treatment and involuntary commitment."
"The Hippocratic Oath discusses basic principles for medical professionals and dates back to the fifth century BCE."
"The field of medical ethics encompasses practical application in clinical settings as well as scholarly work in philosophy."
"New techniques for gene editing raise important moral questions about their applications in medicine and treatments as well as societal impacts on future generations."
"Ethical committees play a role in addressing culturally sensitive issues and ethical conflicts in hospitals and other healthcare settings."