Should doctors intentionally do less than the best?
(1/20)
The papers of Burley and Harris, and Draper and Chadwick, in this issue, raise a problem: what should doctors do when patients request an option which is not the best available? This commentary argues that doctors have a duty to offer that option which will result in the individual affected by that choice enjoying the highest level of wellbeing. Doctors can deviate from this duty and submaximise--bring about an outcome that is less than the best--only if there are good reasons to do so. The desire to have a child which is genetically related provides little, if any, reason to submaximise. The implication for cloning, preimplantation diagnosis and embryo transfer is that doctors should only produce a clone or transfer embryos expected to enjoy a level of wellbeing which is less than that enjoyed by other children the couple could have, if there is a good reason to employ that technology. This paper sketches what might constitute a good reason to submaximise. (+info)
A reply to Joseph Bernstein.
(2/20)
Dr. Bernstein suggests that anti-vivisectionists should be able to fill in a directive requesting that they receive no medical treatment developed through work on animals. It is replied that this would only be reasonable if research not using animals had long been funded as adequately and its results were currently available. (+info)
American physicians and dual loyalty obligations in the "war on terror".
(3/20)
BACKGROUND: Post-September 11, 2001, the U.S. government has labeled thousands of Afghan war detainees "unlawful combatants". This label effectively deprives these detainees of the protection they would receive as "prisoners of war" under international humanitarian law. Reports have emerged that indicate that thousands of detainees being held in secret military facilities outside the United States are being subjected to questionable "stress and duress" interrogation tactics by U.S. authorities. If true, American military physicians could be inadvertently becoming complicit in detainee abuse. Moreover, the American government's openly negative views towards such detainees could result in military physicians not wanting to provide reasonable care to detainees, despite it being their ethical duty to do so. DISCUSSION: This paper assesses the physician's obligations to treat war detainees in the light of relevant instruments of international humanitarian law and medical ethics. It briefly outlines how detainee abuse flourished in apartheid South Africa when state physicians became morally detached from the interests of their detainee patients. I caution U.S physicians not to let the same mindset befall them. I urge the U.S. medical community to advocate for detainee rights in the U.S, regardless of the political culture the detainee emerged from. I offer recommendations to U.S physicians facing dual loyalty conflicts of interest in the "war on terror". SUMMARY: If U.S. physicians are faced with a conflict of interest between following national policies or international principles of humanitarian law and medical ethics, they should opt to adhere to the latter when treating war detainees. It is important for the U.S. medical community to speak out against possible detainee abuse by the U.S. government. (+info)
A proposed stem cell research policy.
(4/20)
The aspirations of scientists and patients for human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research in the U.S. motivate attention to the nitty-gritty of law and regulation and its confluence with such moral consensus as lies within our reach. Federal law and regulation form a tangle. Analysis yields several conclusions not widely appreciated. A legislative enactment is the rate-limiting step of federally funded research, the restriction of research imposed by the previous administration's policy as reprised in current proposals fails to achieve its objective of avoiding complicity in embryo sacrifice, the current administration's policy is another failed noncomplicity scheme under which research cannot be expanded without demolishing its putative justification, and the Food and Drug Administration has already effectively interdicted procreative cloning. While it is not plausible to deny complicity in embryo sacrifice when performing or funding hESC research, one can justify sacrifice of some embryos by an argument whose premises are consistent with a wide range of moral and religious views. This paper proposes a rule of public policy providing for the use of donated embryos barred from the womb. This rule would optimize research while manifesting its moral justification. The rule is suitable for implementation by any government that funds hESC research. The rule's justification provides a cogent argument for such incremental steps toward its implementation as become politically feasible from time to time. (+info)
Fetal tissue transplantation: can it be morally insulated from abortion?
(5/20)
Ethical controversy over transplantation of human fetal tissue has arisen because the source of tissue is induced abortions. Opposition to such transplants has been based on various arguments, including the following: rightful informed consent cannot be obtained for use of fetal tissue from induced abortions, and fetal tissue transplantation might result in an increase in the number of abortions. These arguments were not accepted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Human Fetal Tissue Transplantation Research Panel. The majority opinion of the panel stated that abortion and fetal tissue use are entirely separate issues, and that tissue use is ethically acceptable because it can be morally insulated from the issue of abortion. In support of this view, panel members and others have replied to the arguments put forward by opponents of fetal tissue use. However, replies to the two arguments mentioned above have been unsatisfactory, and the shortcomings of those replies are identified herein. Examination of the arguments pro and con suggests that fetal tissue use cannot be completely insulated from the issue of abortion. Thus, in seeking an ethical justification for fetal tissue transplantation we must consider reasons other than those put forward by the NIH panel. In this paper it is argued that whatever wrong is involved in using fetal tissue from induced abortions must be balanced against the benefits for patients, and it is on this basis that fetal tissue transplantation can be ethically justified. (+info)
Degrading and non-degrading sex in popular music: a content analysis.
(6/20)
OBJECTIVES: Those exposed to more degrading sexual references in popular music are more likely to initiate intercourse at a younger age. The purpose of this study was to perform a content analysis of contemporary popular music with particular attention paid to the prevalence of degrading and non-degrading sexual references. We also aimed to determine if sexual references of each subtype were associated with other song characteristics and/or content. METHODS: We used Billboard magazine to identify the top popular songs in 2005. Two independent coders each analyzed all of these songs (n = 279) for degrading and non-degrading sexual references. As measured with Cohen's kappa scores, inter-rater agreement on degrading vs. non-degrading sex was substantial. Mentions of substance use, violence, and weapon carrying were also coded. RESULTS: Of the 279 songs identified, 103 (36.9%) contained references to sexual activity. Songs with references to degrading sex were more common than songs with references to non-degrading sex (67 [65.0%] vs. 36 [35.0%], p < 0.001). Songs with degrading sex were most commonly Rap (64.2%), whereas songs with non-degrading sex were most likely Country (44.5%) or Rhythm & Blues/Hip-Hop (27.8%). Compared with songs that had no mention of sexual activity, songs with degrading sex were more likely to contain references to substance use, violence, and weapon carrying. Songs with non-degrading sex were no more likely to mention these other risk behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: References to sexual activity are common in popular music, and degrading sexual references are more prevalent than non-degrading references. References to degrading sex also frequently appear with references to other risky behaviors. (+info)
The prevalence of academic dishonesty in Texas dental hygiene programs.
(7/20)
The media has given much attention to the academic cheating crisis in America. A majority of college students believe that, in today's global environment, it is necessary to cheat in order to get ahead and to compete with their peers. The prevalence and attitudes concerning academic dishonesty of health professions students, including those in medical, dental, and nursing schools, have been extensively researched. No such studies exist in the discipline of dental hygiene. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of cheating in Texas dental hygiene programs. Four hundred surveys were mailed to twenty Texas dental hygiene schools for graduating students to complete. A total of 289 usable surveys was returned for a response rate of 72.25 percent. Data were analyzed using SPSS with frequencies and chi-square tests. Findings from this study reveal that 86.5 percent of graduating Texas dental hygiene students have cheated a minimum of one time during matriculation. Students identified the demands of what they considered academic overload as the primary justification for cheating behavior. (+info)
Open doorway to truth: legacy of the Minnesota tobacco trial.
(8/20)