The fair distribution of finite resources or ‘goods’ is distributive justice in its simplest form (Campbell, 2017). Rawls is perhaps the most influential contemporary figure who presented a...
Despite the creatine kinase and other blood tests being normal, Anne subsequently contracts pneumonia resulting in a month's stay in hospital. Upon her return home, Anne no longer feels she can leave...
In 2013, a paramedic refused to attend a 999 call near the end of their shift, when no further resources were apparently available. It gained media attention, and following a 2-year suspension, the...
‘in which autonomous patients are choosers who act intentionally, with understanding, and without controlling influences that determine their actions’. .
‘Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and...
An ability to account for our actions with a clear evidence base is a crucial component of professional accountability (Gallagher and Hodge, 2012) and reflected in a healthcare professional's code of...
The four principles approach to biomedical ethics provides a straightforward framework for considering moral dilemmas, and is based on four moral principles: respect for autonomy, beneficence,...
The discussion that follows is concerned only with consent as it relates to a competent adult patient receiving treatment in England. Patients who lack capacity, are under 18 years of age, or...
The patient, who will be called John for confidentiality purposes, presented to the ambulance service with an ‘altered mental state’. John had arrived at a friend's house during the night, behaving in...
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) took force in 2007; the long-awaited legislation that addressed the legal lacuna regarding decisions made on behalf of adults deemed unable to consent for...
In a series of cases, the English courts have recognised the legal effect at common law of advance statements. In the case of validity of an advance refusal of life-saving treatment, the courts will...
Laura is 29 years old and has schizophrenia. She is also 30 weeks pregnant. Her partner (Simon) has called 999—she has not been taking her medication for several days as she wrongly believed it might...