Module 1 Flashcards
What is bioethics?
area of moral philosophy focusing primarily on ethical problems in the medical and life sciences, including genetics and biology, and in the provision of health care.
Where is a legal reason typically found?
typically found in a statute or a legal precedent
Where does a religious reason derive from?
typically derives from a religious text of some kind
What does a moral reason have to do with?
with respect for rights, the promotion of well-being, equality or fairness, protection from harm, fidelity to promises, gratitude, dignity, and respect for individual autonomy
List the 4 principles of biomedical ethics?
Non-maleficence, beneficence, autonomy, justice
Non-maleficence
Do not cause harm to a patient
Beneficence
benefit the patient and reduce harm
Autonomy
respect the choices, preferences of patients
Justice
promote fairness, and treat people equally
Prima facie duties
Duties that healthcare professionals might have can be overridden depending on other circumstances or competing claims - not absolute requirements
Sub-areas of biomedical ethics
clinical, public health, and research ethics
Describe Clinical Ethics
Ethical analysis of clinical medical practice
Describe public health ethics
Ethical analysis of issues relating to public health, which is the societal approach to protecting and promoting the health of populations
Who are the people involved with clinical ethics?
physicians, nurses, patients
Who are people involved with public health ethics?
populations and sub-populations, governments, international bodies, public health boards, etc.
Describe research ethics
Ethical analysis of medical research, which aims to ensure such research protects the consent and well-being of participants.
Who are the people involved with
researchers / patients, research subjects, ethics review boards, etc.
What is moral philosophy?
study of morality
What are the areas of study in moral philosophy?
Meta-ethics, normative ethics, applied ethics
Describe meta-ethics
involves asking questions about whether morality can or does exist, whether it is subjective or objective, whether moral propositions can be true or false, what the nature of morality is, where morality comes from, and so on.
What is normative ethics?
branch of ethics that aims to determine how to act morally and how to lead a normal life.
What does normative ethics involve?
Involves creating ethical theories or systems that can help us evaluate what the best courses of action is, how to live a moral life, or how to determine what is good.
What do normative ethics aim for?
Aim to develop standards or norms from which we can think about morality and what is good or bad
What are applied ethics?
study of specific, real-world problems to identify the ethical issues that are involved in that scenario and make suggestions about what we should do to remedy these issues
What are normative claims?
statements that express an evaluation or value judgement, beyond merely describing something.
How can normative claims be identified?
Identified by words like should/shouldn’t, right/wrong, etc
What are descriptive claims?
statements that describe something
Example of descriptive claim
My car is red
What is utilitarianism?
consequentialist theory because it is concerned with the outcomes of actions to determine whether those actions are morally good
What is consequentialism?
a morally right action is one that promotes good consequences
What is deontology?
a morally right action not in terms of the consequences that the action brings about, but instead focuses on the intentions or reasons that guide our actions
Does deontology suggest that we need to respect the dignity and autonomy of other people?
Yes
What do virtue ethics ask?
what does it mean to be a good person?
Describe care ethics
morality is fundamentally about caring for others well and fostering healthy relationships.
