Review article
Morality, honesty, justice and primum non nocere - From the point of view of a psychiatrist
Vera Folnegović-Šmalc
; Bolnica Vrapče, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Abstract
The article aims to present some contemporary problems and dilemmas, not about what is morality, rectitude and honesty, but what is the essential contemporary reality of how a physician in his everyday practice finds a pragmatical outcome and resolution of the paradigm primum non nocere, however without intention to relativise other value systems and human dignity.
Still, we can state that morality, as defined by some authors, differs, but it seems that a very comprehensive, acceptable and clear definition would be that which considers that morality is an ensemble of social norms which are in harmony with a certain concept of goodness, and that it is also the right and obligation of an individual to live and behave according to principles of rectitude and honesty and to be thus a corrective factor for others.
The article presents the real situation of the relationship physician – patient in circumstances of today's psychiatry from the viewpoint of how to remain or become moral towards one's patients by several approaches: relationship with a specific patient, protection of his rights, dignity and interests, as well as of those of the therapist - how to deal with legislation and the psychical illness and the behaviour of psychically sick patients and his own morality and consciousness.
Problems and ethic dilemmas of today's frequently described clinical studies on drug tests from the standpoint of psychically sick persons and the role of psychiatrist as court expert are especially presented.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
22278
URI
Publication date:
22.7.2007.
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