Good Medical Practice Professionalism, Ethics And Law

The Doctor and Patient relationship aspect of Medicine has changed drastically in the last twenty years. It has evolved from paternalism (the doctor makes the decision for the patient) to shared decision making where the patient is considered an equal partner in his/her own health related decisions. Informed consent is the cornerstone for this view. When a patient or a research subject makes an autonomous decision after understanding, the risks and benefits involved with the decision is Informed consent. Complete Informed consent covers the following components: competency, disclosure, comprehension and voluntary. Competency refers to the requirement for the individual to be of legal age and be mentally competent to understand the process.

a) Reflect on the journey of medical ethics and interpret how the principles of the Hippocratic Oath are applied within your organisation………………………………….…………

Patient informed consent refers to the situation where the patient is fully informed on the consequences of their health care decision after which the patient gives the decision. For there to be informed consent, there are five elements that must be discussed. The first is the nature of the patient's decision then the applicable alternatives to the proposed intervention. Third are the risks, benefits and uncertainties associated with each of the alternatives. Fourth is the assessment of the patient's understanding and last is the acceptance of the intervention or an alternative by the patient. Before the patient's consent is considered to be valid, the patient's competency to make the decision must be addressed. The criteria for evaluating the patient's competency is clearly stated in section 3 of the 2005 Mental Capacity Act which states that provided the person is able to understand, retain and use information provided and to communicate their decision in any way such as talking or sign language, they are competent to make a decision. If a patient is treated against their refusal to consent, it amounts to the tort of battery or can also be considered the crime of assault. In addition to this, laws that touch on human rights reinforce the importance of the protection of the physical integrity of the individual in terms of their right to respect of their private life. Therefore, refusal of medical treatment is a human right.

The elements of the principles of confidentiality can be broken down into four separate categories: (1) Information provided by the patient is kept confidential unless consent from the patient has otherwise been given—unless it has direct legal implications or endangers the general public. (2) Informed Consent: is given freely, because the correct information has been supplied and the patient has sufficient information on the impacts involved. Information is otherwise given out on a need to know basis. (3) Duty of Care: Information is given out in order to protect the safety and health of others and the patient. Legal and general public health fall under this category. (4) Documenting Decisions: Consultations and actions that lead to

However, there are common ethical issues a health care professional might face are confidentiality, relationships with patients and matters related to consent, specifically in the treatment of minors. Health and Care Professions Council is a regulator, they safeguard the public. They keep a register of health and care professional who meet their standards for their preparation, professional skills, behavior and health. They have developed and monitors strategy and policy. Health and Care Professions Council has its own set of standards of proficiency which

Furthermore, as discussed in chapter 3 there is inconsistent application of the legal rules to determine the liability of the medical professional. Therefore, as previously discussed solicitors are usually hesitant to pursue clinical negligence claims by the means of SFA. With SFA being the only means for claimants to afford to pursue clinical negligence claims the removal of civil legal aid for clinical negligence claims has meant that many claimants are unable to access the necessary legal representation and in turn access courts for their civil rights to be determined. Consequently, many claimants are not compensated for medical injuries inflicted due to the negligence of the medical professional, thus the current system is failing to meet its primary aim. More importantly, the practical difficulties in accessing and in turn using the civil justice system for clinical negligence claims has meant that the Scottish Government is failing to meet its obligation under Article 6 and 8 of the

Diminished responsibility under S2 of the Coroners & Justice Act 2009 has also had some criticisms as the new law seems to have solved the majority of the previous issues as the new terminology and concepts are more contemporary and the confusing matters relevant to the mens rea have been eliminated. However there are still certain aspects which are need for reform. Diminished responsibility under the CCJA 2009 would be criticised on the fact that the list of recognised medical condition is too short and in the future the list will become longer which may cause issues. In order to solve this matter there should only be a certain amount of recognised medical conditions which meet the requirements of diminished responsibility and only if the

Professionalism in nursing is a key component to have. The nurse that exhibits professionalism can go far in a career. As nurses identify strengths and weaknesses, careers can change for the better. The strengths that I see in myself are optimism, good listener, and quick learner. When I think about who I am as a nurse, I don’t focus on tasks and to do lists. Although skills are important for patient care, there are psychosocial aspects that should be addressed.

Healthcare professionals will be faced with ethical dilemmas throughout their career, particularly in the hospital environment. Having an education regarding professional healthcare ethics will provide some direction in how to best address these dilemmas at a time when either the patient or their family is in need of making decisions for themselves or their family member. It can be difficult for healthcare professionals to weigh professional protocol against their own personal beliefs and ethical understandings when determining critical care for their patient.

The four principles of medical ethics include nonmaleficence, beneficence, autonomy, and justice. These principles were created by Beauchamp and James Childress because they felt these four were the building blocks of people’s morality. Nonmaleficence is to do no harm to others. Beneficence is to care or help others. Autonomy is to respect another’s wishes. These four principles relate to issues surrounding physician-assisted death in many ways. To begin, there are seven individual forms of PAD. They are the following; voluntary passive euthanasia, nonvoluntary passive euthanasia, involuntary passive euthanasia, voluntary active euthanasia, nonvoluntary active euthanasia, involuntary active euthanasia, and physician-assisted suicide. Passive euthanasia is an act in which the health care physician withholds treatment or surgery and the result is the patient’s death. An example of passive euthanasia is a cancer patient refusing treatment and the physician agrees with their decision, therefore the patient dies from the lack of intervention to treat their illness. Active euthanasia is an act in which the health care physician has a direct contact with the patient’s death due to the physician’s act of doing something to the patient in order for them to die. An example of active euthanasia is an injection of potassium chloride. Voluntary is when the patient is requesting assistance to die. Nonvoluntary is when the patient is not requesting assistance and their wishes are unknown

It is important that we act in a way that is ethical, legal, and commendable. Medical professionals struggle with healthcare dilemmas that are not experienced by the general public. Medical-ethical decisions have become increasingly complicated with the advancement of medical science and technology. (Fremgen) Just like the government has laws for citizens, not having laws in healthcare would allow people to do anything they want. It is important that we study the ethics and laws of healthcare, because if we were put in a situation it is essential that we know the difference between right and wrong. In the article I found, it talks about a nurse who refuses to give CPR to an older woman who collapsed in a senior residence where she works. This article has many more ethical issues than legal issues.

At a practice level, the importance and guidance of the Code of Conduct, Code of Ethics and NPA are demonstrated on a daily basis with regard to the issues of documentation, informed consent and open disclosure, and confidentiality. With respect to documentation, nurses must be able to document patient assessments and responses in an accurate, comprehensive and confidential manner and record all observations objectively. Informed consent and open disclosure are also major legal issues nurses face daily. It refers to the communication between the patient and health professional that results in the patient's agreement to undergo a specific procedure and requires that the patient has thoroughly understood the procedure, implications and risks prior to giving written consent.

Medical ethics guides right/ wrong in the practice of medicine and clinical care. A possible problem of medical ethics in this case is that employees are not properly fitting patients with the correctly sized masked and employees are suffering from communicable diseases.

The health care industry continually deals with the lives of individuals and is bound by the ethical and legal aspects that influence decisions of health care professionals in their clinical practice. This essay aims to discuss the various issues and ethical dilemmas that arise with regards to the consent of consumers. In the attempt to explore these points, different literatures are used to shed light on this topic. This paper begins by defining what consent is and the role of nurses or the health care team in being an advocate of the patient when requiring consent. It moves on with the discussion of ethical frameworks, which are recognized nationally and internationally, as these carry significant influences in health care decision-making. The essay also brings out the essence of ethical theories and its relevance to consent giving. It then tackles the similarities and differences of the Code of Ethics and ethical guidelines relevant to both nursing and midwives as both professions work closely in the care of mothers, children and families. Issues and views from experienced professionals in these fields are presented and critically compared. It then considers both ethical and legal aspects, which seeks arguments and rational implications. The last topic points to the social and spiritual factors pertinent to consent that impact the society particularly on the care of patients and concludes by summarising discussed points and arguments about consent.

The essay will discuss the ETHICS IN MEDICINE : The Relationship Between Law and Medical Ethics: