David C. Thomasma – författare

Beneficence - doing the right and good thing - is the fundamental principle of medical ethics. It points all medical decisions and actions toward advancing the patient's best interests. Yet in our normally pluralistic society where rights are asserted more frequently than obligations, this ancient principle tends to be obscured or confused with paternalism. This book attempts to rejuvenate and redevelop the notion of beneficence as a guiding principle within the ethics of medicine. The authors examine the content of the concept of 'patient good' from both philosophical and practical viewpoints, and they strive to supplement and in some ways transcend duty- and rights-based ethical systems. The book is divided into three sections. The first develops the authors' model of the doctor-patient relation as 'beneficence-in-trust'. The second examines the implications of the model for that relationship. The third explores some consequences of the beneficence model with respect to the difficult challenges facing health care, such as allocation of resources and decisions about incompetent patients. Like the authors' earlier work, A Philosophical Basis of Medical Practice (Oxford 1981), this book argues that the special nature of the doctor-patient relationship should be the primary source of the canons of professional medical ethics. It will be of value to physicians and ethicists as well as students of medicine and bioethics.

This book constructs a virtue-based ethics for medicine and health care. Beginning with the problem of relating virtues to principles, the authors develop a theory that this linkage lies in the goals of medicine and the nature of medical practice as a moral community. Specific virtues such as trust, compassion, prudence, justice, courage, temperance, and self-effacement are discussed in separate chapters. The book ends by examining how a virtue-based ethic of medicine makes a difference in analysing problems like caring for the poor, research on human subjects, whether the medical virtues can be taught in professional training, and how a refurbished philosophy of medicine can enhance medicine and health care in the future.

Biology has been advancing with explosive pace over the last few years and in so doing has raised a host of ethical issues. This book, aimed at the general reader, reviews the major advances of recent years in biology and medicine and explores their ethical implications. From birth to death the reader is taken on a tour of human biology - covering genetics, reproduction, development, transplantation, aging, dying and also the use of animals in research and the impact of human populations on this planet. In each chapter there is a sketch of a field's most recent scientific advances, combined with discussions of the ethical and moral principles and implications for social frameworks and public policy raised by those advances. Anybody interested or concerned about the ethical dilemmas caused by advances in science and medicine should read this book.

The existing literature in medical ethics does not serve the practical needs of medical students and trainees very well, as the dilemmas posed are generally beyond their direct control, and being a student or junior doctor brings its own set of ethical concerns. The editors have addressed this need by compiling a series of case studies from around the world and inviting an international team of leading ethicists and clinicians to comment on them. Over 80 actual cases cover the range of possible problems a medical trainee may encounter on the ward, from drug and alcohol abuse, whistleblowing and improper sexual conduct to performing procedures, handling authority, disclosure, blaming, personal responses to patients, and misrepresentation of research. The book will be an essential guide on how to cope with the ethical dilemmas of those embarking on medical careers.

This volume is dedicated to the philosophy of medicine advanced by Edmund D. Pellegrino, a renowned physician educator and philosopher. Pellegrino's thinking about the philosophy of medicine centres on the importance of illness in the life of the patient, and the professional relationship established by promising to alleviate suffering. From this relationship norms are established that contribute to the staying power of medicine as a moral enterprise. Chapters are included from established thinkers and newcomers to the field, all of whom have been influenced by Pellegrino. Some chapters expand upon his thinking for primary care, managed care, and other delivery systems. Other chapters explain in more detail certain key concepts in Pellegrino's thought, like beneficence, doing no harm, and clinical phronesis or prudential decision making. Still others explore areas of difficulty like the reliance on role modeling and virtue ethics, the problem of pluralism and a loss of professional normative ethics, and the search for the foundations of the philosophy of medicine.Constructing a viable philosophy of medicine for the next century is an essential task for grounding the morality of medicine during enormous social and economic change. Pellegrino's thinking and the ideas of those he has influenced will contribute immensely to this challenge.

The Dutch experience with euthanasia is valuable for all cultures embroiled in debates about its morality. In the Netherlands, doctors can openly and intentionally end the life of their patients. This practice inescapably influences the practice of medicine everywhere in the world. Yet for a country yielding so much power in shaping our thoughts and policies, it is especially dangerous to neglect its own struggles with euthanasia. The arguments, laws, and policy adjustments should not be overlooked or misunderstood. Without an adequate portrait of the internal Dutch debate, including public and professional arguments as well as intensely personal stories - as set forth in "Asking to Die" - the valuable lessons from the Netherlands will be lost for other countries. This book addresses the debate among Dutch physicians, policy-makers, academics, lawyers, and bioethicists, as well as families, and it does so using academic papers as well as personal experiences.

This work is the result of a long-standing clinical and educational cooperation between a medical psychologist (Bergsma) and a medical ethicist/philosopher (Thomasma). It is thoroughly interdisciplinary in its examination of the difficulties of honouring the patient's and the physician's autonomy, especially in light of the changes in health care worldwide at the beginning of the 21st century. Although autonomy has become the primary standard of bioethics, little has been done to link it to the ways people actually behave, nor to its roots in the healing relationship. Combining as it does the disciplines of psychology and philosophy, this book is a step in that direction.

Christian health care professionals in our secular and pluralistic society often face uncertainty about the place religious faith holds in today's medical practice. Through an examination of a virtue-based ethics, this book proposes a theological view of medical ethics that helps the Christian physician reconcile faith, reason, and professional duty. Edmund D. Pellegrino and David C. Thomasma trace the history of virtue in moral thought, and they examine current debate about a virtue ethic's place in contemporary bioethics. Their proposal balances theological ethics, based on the virtues of faith, hope, and charity, with contemporary medical ethics, based on the principles of beneficence, justice, and autonomy. The result is a theory of clinical ethics that centers on the virtue of charity and is manifest in practical moral decisions. Using Christian bioethical principles, the authors address today's divisive issues in medicine. For health care providers and all those involved in the fields of ethics and religion, this volume shows how faith and reason can combine to create the best possible healing relationship between health care professional and patient.

Exploring the moral foundations of the healing relationship, Edmund D. Pellegrino and David C. Thomasma offer the health care professional a highly readable Christian philosophy of medicine. This book examines the influence religious beliefs have on the kind of person the health professional should be, on the health care policies a society should adopt, and on what constitutes healing in its fullest sense. "Helping and Healing" looks at the ways a religious perspective shapes the healing relationship and the ethics of that relationship. Pellegrino and Thomasma seek to clarify the role of religious belief in health care by providing a moral basis for such commitment as well as a balancing role for reason. This book establishes a common ground for believers and skeptics alike in their dedication to relieve suffering by showing that helping and healing require an involvement in the religious values of patients. It clearly argues that religion provides crucial insights into medical practice and morality that cannot be ignored, even in our morally heterogeneous society.Central to the authors' message is the concept of patients' vulnerabilities and the need to help them recover not only from the disease but also from an existential assault on their personhood. They then show how this understanding can move caregivers to view their professions as vocations and thereby change the nature of health care from a business to a community of healing. Physicians, nurses, administrators, clergy, theologians, and other health professionals and church leaders will find this volume helpful for their own reflections on the role of religion in the health care ministry and for making a religious commitment integral to their professional lives.

This book illuminates issues in medical ethics revolving around the complex bond between healer and patient, focusing on friendship and other important values in the healing relationship. Embracing medicine, philosophy, theology, and bioethics, it considers whether bioethical issues in medicine, nursing, and dentistry can be examined from the perspective of the healing relationship rather than external moral principles. Distinguished contributors explore the role of the health professional, the moral basis of health care, greater emphasis on the humanities in medical education, and some of the current challenges facing healers today.

This text offers a variety of explorations on the nature of the human person, as it relates to health care, medicine, and mental health. It explores the concept of person, human dignity, and the special place human beings hold in the goals of healing and the social structures of medical delivery. Ramifications of the theory of personhood are presented for bioethics, genetics, individuality, uniqueness, international law, feminism, and human rights in health care. Intended for professionals in the fields of philosophy of medicine, law, and bioethics, this book will also appeal to psychologists and medical anthropologists.

Demographic studies foreshadow a dramatic increase in the proportion of "older" members of our global population. The task of allocating public and private resources to accommodate present and future generations is a daunting challenge for all nations. Not surprisingly, planning for the health of an ageing society raises profound issues in law, ethics, and public policy. "Culture, Health, and Social Change" is the first of three volumes on aging conceived for the International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine. Leading scholars from a range of disciplines contest some of the predominant paradigms on aging, and critically assess modern trends in social health policy. How we approach and understand "ageing" will have indelible effects on existing and future elder citizens. Acknowledging the cultural variances that exist in the human experience of ageing is therefore of vital importance in order to respond to individual needs in a manner that is not paternalistic, discriminatory, or exclusionary.

Positive conceptions of "healthy aging" are rightly displacing negative ageist perceptions of older members of our society. Nevertheless, at some stage, most elderly citizens will require some form of assistance from other members of society. When, through the natural course of aging or due to illness or injury, the body or mind begins to fail, a legitimate need for intervention - and care - will arise. In such cases, the aging process can indeed lead one down the path toward vulnerability, or at the very least, reliance on some form of support. Scholars from a range of disciplines address some of the major issues in elder care facing modern nations: familial duties of care, the future of social welfare systems, housing, dementia, abuse and neglect.

Some of the most poignant issues in human relations arise from decisions that are taken at the end of life. At these moments, decision-makers are faced with questions that test the limits of social and familial obligation. Responding to these issues challenges not only the moral integrity of individual and public value systems, but also the legitimacy of legal structures and underlying institutional supports. "Decisions at the End of Life" is the last volume in a trilogy on aging conceived for the International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine. Leading scholars from a range of disciplines examine some of the most emotive topics in the study of aging: assessing quality of life, improving end-of-life care, palliative care, euthanasia, and consent to research.

Culture, Health, and Social Change is the first of three volumes on Aging conceived for the International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine. Leading scholars from a range of disciplines contest some of the predominant paradigms on aging, and critically assess modern trends in social health policy. How we approach and understand "aging" will have indelible effects on existing and future elder citizens. Acknowledging the cultural variances that exist in the human experience of aging is therefore of vital importance in order to respond to individual needs in a manner that is not paternalistic, discriminatory, or exclusionary.

Moral capacity is an important feature of what it means to be human. In this volume, the contributors have taken on the daunting task of trying to distinguish between legal and moral capacity. This distinction is difficult at times for clinicians, philosophers and legal scholars alike. Part of the challenge of defining moral capacity lies in the difficulty of adequately categorizing it. For this reason, the editors have chosen to divide the book into three parts. The first looks at the concepts involved in the discussion of moral capacity; the second considers the role of moral capacity in the lives of professionals; and the final part reflects on case studies of moral capacity or incapacity illustrating the challenge that moral capacity presents - its definition lying between two seemingly incommensurable models, those of the threshold and continuum. This volume takes a multidisciplinary approach to the subject, and ties the disciplines of medicine, philosophy and law into the health context. It will be of interest to medical health professionals as well as researchers working in the areas of philosophy and law.

This volume is dedicated to the philosophy of medicine advanced by Edmund D. Pellegrino, a renowned physician educator and philosopher. Pellegrino's thinking about the philosophy of medicine centers on the importance of illness in the life of the patient, and the professional relationship established by promising to alleviate suffering. From this relationship norms are established that contribute to the staying power of medicine as a moral enterprise. Chapters are included from established thinkers and newcomers to the field, all of whom have been influenced by Pellegrino. Some chapters expand upon his thinking for primary care, managed care, and other delivery systems. Other chapters explain in more detail certain key concepts in Pellegrino's thought, like beneficence, doing no harm, and clinical phronesis or prudential decision making. Still others explore areas of difficulty like the reliance on role modeling and virtue ethics, the problem of pluralism and a loss of professional normative ethics, and the search for the foundations of the philosophy of medicine.Constructing a viable philosophy of medicine for the next century is an essential task for grounding the morality of medicine during enormous social and economic change. Pellegrino's thinking and the ideas of those he has influenced will contribute immensely to this challenge.

This book is the result of a long-standing clinical and educational cooperation between a medical psychologist (Bergsma) and a medical ethicist/philosopher (Thomasma). It is thoroughly interdisciplinary in its examination of the difficulties of honoring the patient's and the physician's autonomy, especially in light of the changes in health care worldwide today. Although autonomy has become the primary standard of bioethics, little has been done to link it to the ways people actually behave, nor to its roots in the healing relationship. Combining as it does the disciplines of psychology and philosophy, this book is a step in that direction.

This book offers a rich variety of thoughtful explorations on the nature of the human person especially as related to health care, medicine, and mental health. Rarely are so many different viewpoints collected in one place about the intriguing puzzle that is the concept of person, human dignity, and the special place human beings hold in the goals of healing and the social structures of medical delivery. Ramifications of the theory of personhood are presented for bioethics, genetics, individuality, uniqueness, international law, feminism, and human rights in health care. Intended for professionals in the fields of philosophy of medicine, law, and bioethics, this book will also appeal to psychologists and medical anthropologists.

Culture, Health, and Social Change is the first of three volumes on Aging conceived for the International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine. Leading scholars from a range of disciplines contest some of the predominant paradigms on aging, and critically assess modern trends in social health policy. How we approach and understand "aging" will have indelible effects on existing and future elder citizens. Acknowledging the cultural variances that exist in the human experience of aging is therefore of vital importance in order to respond to individual needs in a manner that is not paternalistic, discriminatory, or exclusionary.

Caring for Our Elders is the second of three volumes on Aging conceived for the International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine. Leading scholars from a range of disciplines address some of the major issues in elder care facing modern nations: familial duties of care, the future of social welfare systems, housing, dementia, abuse and neglect.

Decisions at the End of Life is the last volume in a trilogy on Aging conceived for the International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine. Leading scholars from a range of disciplines examine some of the most emotive topics in the study of aging: assessing quality of life, improving end-of-life care, palliative care, euthanasia, and consent to research.