[The ethical challenge of "healthy patients"] (original) (raw)

El " paciente sano " : desafíos éticos de la medicina preventiva

The ethical challenge of " healthy patients " This paper deals with the phenomenon of the " healthy patient " , an ethical issue receiving increased attention at a global level. The genesis of this phenomenon rests in the contradiction between a higher availability of technical and scientific resources for prevention and, paradoxically, the tendency towards an accelerated classification of healthy people as being at risk of developing disease. This manuscript focus on the ethical implications of the " healthy patient " , using a theoretical and philosophical approach. Therefore, this research aims to set forth the phenomenon of the " healthy patient " and its fundamental ethical problem, interpreting it as a contradiction between the perennial goal of medicine to maintain and promote health and the increasing use of technology. Thus, it can be hypothesized that the early classification of individuals as subjects at risk is a problem of time. Finally an interpretation from a philosophical point of view will be presented to offer a better understanding of the ethical problem of the " healthy patient " and to elucidate possible strategies of action for physicians and their patients. (Rev Med Chile 2017; 145: 790-794)

[Ethical analysis of the principle of health vulnerability]

Cuadernos de bioetica : revista oficial de la Asociacion Espanola de Bioetica y Etica Medica, 2019

The concept of vulnerability has determined multiple actions in the health field. In recent years, this concept has originated various holistic models that oscillate between considering vulnerability as a descriptive element of an accidental situation until it is considered a guiding principle of medical practice. The need to deepen this phenomenon from the point of view of moral philosophy is perceived. The moral reflection reveals an imbalance in the binomial autonomy-dependence, generating opposite solutions in decision-making. Although autonomy has so far supported much of the medical action, the dependency raises a new perspective on vulnerability, rooted in the ethics of care. This perspective allows us to overcome the consideration of vulnerability as a characteristic, an accident or a principle. Vulnerability appears as an intrinsic dimension of the human being that, far from altering its dignity or autonomy, makes it posible to demonstrate the need of others to reach their ...

[Ethical questions in the Spanish journal "Medicina Paliativa": 1994 - 2013]

2014

OBJECTIVE "Medicina Paliativa" is the official journal of the Spanish Society of Palliative Care ("Sociedad Espanola de Cuidados Paliativos"; SECPAL) and it reflects the interests, also on bioethics, of the professionals caring terminal people. We want to know what the bioethical questions they discuss and their approaches are. METHODS From all the published articles in "Medicina Paliativa" from 1994 to 2013 we selected those referred to bioethics topics. We analysed: number of publications, author, subtype of article, year of publication, topic, philosophic approach, and the presence of answers and discussion. Qualitative topics were reviewed and agreed by at least two authors. RESULTS There were 60 (9%) publications with bioethics profile from a total of 672 analyzed articles. A majority were signed by only one author. 31 (51%) were published as letter. The most relevant topics were: euthanasia, dignity, proportionality of treatment and care, sedation...

Tomando en serio el respeto al paciente: una cuestión 'compleja'

Resumen Las palabras, en su uso y abuso, pierden fuerza. Así acontece con el respeto al paciente y a su autonomía, hablamos mucho de ello pero no a fondo y no siempre nos lo tomamos en serio. Sin embargo la cuestión es esencial en la humanización de la atención primaria, y más en domicilio a pie de cama. Para comenzar a cambiar algunas cosas habrá que saber conciliar, jerarquizar y, por tanto, distinguir, como mínimo 6 éticas: la personal (del profesional, del paciente y de sus familiares), la cívica, la profesional y la organizativa. Pero es que además cabría recordar que "respeto" significa mirar atentamente: la atención y el respeto implican educar la mirada, sensibilizarla, ampliarla. Formar a los profesionales en estas cuestiones éticas de principios y virtudes en la atención respetuosa a la persona se hace tanto más necesario cuando la tecnificación y la impersonalización han acampado sibilinamente en nuestras relaciones en general. Y difícilmente la atención sanitaria permanece ajena a esos cambios sociales vertiginosos en sociedades, para acabarlo de complicar, moralmente plurales.

[How does Hinduism analyze an ethical clinical dilemma]

Revista medica de Chile

It is indispensable for physicians to understand and recognize the fusion of different cultures, to deliver the best possible service to patients with different cultural backgrounds, especially when ethical-medical problems are involved. The Hindu community in Chile differs in significant ways with the western culture. This is especially true for some issues such as the belief in reincarnation or gender inequality, among others. These discrepancies can be relevant for the analysis of several bioethical problems. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the different beliefs, traditions and Hindu visions. We hereby present a review of Hinduism, its relation with medical practice and, as an example, a case of abortion in a Hindu family. Reviewing the traditions, beliefs and methods will help to understand and respect the beliefs of different cultures in contemporary and globalized bioethics (Rev Méd Chile 2009; 137: 1516-20). (

La ética médica ante los límites de la autonomía del paciente: el debate sobre las Confesiones de un médico / Medical Ethics and the Limits of Patient Autonomy: The Debate on Confesiones de un Médico

Revista Internacional de Humanidades Médicas

ABSTRACTThis paper reviews the debate around the Spanish translation of Alfred Tauber’s “Confessions of a Medicine Man,” whose main topics were already analyzed in a previous issue of this journal. Professionals with diverse backgrounds within the fields of medical humanities have discussed the pros and cons of Tauber’s proposal. Their main arguments have focused on the roles of scientific advances and the concept of autonomy. To clarify and move forward the debate, we propose to establish a concept of autonomy rooted on the nature of the healthcare relationship and its caring role, taking into consideration the biological, cognitive, and moral features that develop in the interaction between the individual and its environment.RESUMENLa publicación en castellano de las “Confesiones de un médico” de Alfred Tauber, ya reseñadas por Ion Arrieta en el número anterior de esta revista, ha generado un interesante debate en torno a algunos de los problemas tratados en el libro. Profesionale...

What are patients'rights?

Los derechos de los pacientes en perspectiva, 2008

De esta forma, la relación establecida entre médico y paciente pasa a ser más colaboradora, apareciendo la figura del paciente informado 6,7 . En la tabla 1 se señalan las características de la comunicación entre profesional sanitario y paciente en el momento de la consulta, que permite a ambos la colaboración en el proceso de toma de decisiones sobre la conducta a seguir. El paciente informado es una persona que se responsabiliza y se implica en cuidar su salud. Se trata de un paciente consciente de su enfermedad o situación, comprometido para mejorar su condición clínica y su calidad de vida, y que suele cumplir mejor con el tratamiento indicado. Colabora más con los profesionales que lo tratan y, siendo de esta forma «experto», puede ayudar a otros pacientes a formarse y a contribuir a la mejora de los servicios sanitarios 8 .