How do healthcare professionals manage ethical challenges regarding information in healthcare professional/patient clinical interactions? A review of concept- or argument-based articles and case analyses

Abstract

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How do healthcare professionals respond to ethical challenges regarding information management? A review of empirical studies

“…As Watts and Stenner ( 2005 , p. 74f) explain, Q-sort is mainly an exploratory methodology. The goal of this approach is to bring a sense of coherence to individual viewpoints or research questions that have many potentially complex and socially contested answers (Ewuoso et al, 2017 ; Roberts et al, 2015 Watts & Stenner, 2005 ;). Q-sort technique also has vertical and horizontal methodological usefulness.…”

“…However, it is not always clear how information should be managed within the clinical context. Information management here is understood as the power of health professionals to control the disclosure or withholding of information to their patients (Ewuoso et al, 2017 ). This encompasses information about diagnosis, prognosis, and preferred available therapy (Swaminath, 2008 ).…”

“…This obligation is a matter of ethics and law. Withholding relevant information from patients that may guide them in making decisions about what course of treatment to pursue, represents a violation of the patient’s right to informed decision-making (Ewuoso et al, 2017 ).…”

“…Beauchamp and Childress ( 2009 , p. 10f) define a genuine moral dilemma as a puzzling circumstance “in which moral obligations demand or appear to demand that a person adopt each of two (or more) alternative but incompatible actions, such that the person cannot perform all the required actions.” In other words, a genuine dilemma is a situation in which an individual competently judges that they are morally obligated to perform A, but cannot due to other compelling arguments mandating “not A”. Other contingent circumstances also negate performing A and not A at the same time (Ewuoso et al, 2017 ).…”

How to Achieve Cross-Cultural and Theoretical Diversities in Clinical Ethics Support Systems

“…In different studies [4][5][6][7], I have shown that the above engagement is not only desirable, but possible. In one study Ewuoso [4], I showed how a particular African ethics may be used to address the ethical impasse created by applying coercion in psychiatric care.…”