The metamorphosis of medical ethics. A 30-year retrospective

Unilateral Do-Not-Resuscitate Order in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

“…9 The shift from physician paternalism to patient involvement in decision-making to the now near-absolute claims of the patient or proxy's choices is the result of a combination of forces that have occurred over the last three decades. Among the factors leading to this outcome are the development of sophisticated life-prolonging technologies, the rise of third-party coverage, and the elevation of individual over communal values.…”

In reply

“…In the first place, it is good to remember that ''medical expertise does not automatically equate with ethical authority or rectitude.'' 8 1 However, a discussion of the use of sensitivity and specificity, in an age where we are moving toward describing the usefulness of diagnostic tests in terms of likelihood ratios (LRs), is warranted.…”

Context, culture and beyond: medical oaths in a globalising world

“…Regardless of their moral foundation, traditionally oaths are the result of a social process conducted under the influences of philosophical, religious, political and even economic forces, and as such do not simply represent a personal endeavour 7. In different periods of history, oaths were intentionally used to provide resistance against the undermining of the main values of the medical profession, and we imagine that oaths may have the same power in current times.…”