Ethics in medicine

ETHICS IN MEDICINE : TWO CASE STUDIES

In American society for the past several years , morality seem to have become equated primarily with people 's personal sexual behavior . The concept of ethics- especially when it comes to a capitalist society that is profit-driven - appear to have been discarded for the most part

Medical ethics is the morality of how humans should treat one another as applied to the health care profession . This system of ethics has its origins in the teachings of Hippocrates , as well as the great Arab physician Muhammad ibn Zakariya

ar-Razi , who wrote the first book on the the Catholic abbot Saint Benedict , who said Above all , care must be taken of the sick as if they were Christ in person and the rabbi of medieval Spain , Maimonedes

Modern medical ethics are based on six primary values , the first of which is autonomy the patient 's own desires and his /her right to refuse treatment (this is at the heart of the second of the two case studies which follow . The others are beneficence , requiring that a physician always act in the best interest of his /her patient non-maleficence , the principle of doing no harm justice , meaning that health care resources are allocated in a way that is most fair and equitable to all the patient right to dignity and absolute honesty and truth

There are times when these values may come into conflict , particularly when the wishes of a patient is at odds with those of...