The Oxford Handbook of Medical Ethics and Law is the definitive guide to the legal and ethical issues around medical and surgical practice. It is written with the busy clinician in mind who will not have time to read lengthy and complex legal or philosophical documents but requires the key information presented without technical jargon in a handy quick-reference style. The handbook also includes a substantial number of examples taken from a wide variety of specialties with the relevant legal and ethical issues clearly explained, so that the reader can see how these principles play out in day-to-day patient care. Both medical students and current professionals will find this an essential practical resource.

An argument that the system of boards that license human-subject research is so fundamentally misconceived that it inevitably does more harm than good. Medical and social progress depend on research with human subjects. When that research is done in institutions getting federal money, it is regulated (often minutely) by federally required and supervised bureaucracies called "institutional review boards" (IRBs). Do-can-these IRBs do more harm than good? In The Censor's Hand, Schneider addresses this crucial but long-unasked question. Schneider answers the question by consulting a critical but ignored experience-the law's learning about regulation-and by amassing empirical evidence that is scattered around many literatures. He concludes that IRBs were fundamentally misconceived. Their usefulness to human subjects is doubtful, but they clearly delay, distort, and deter research that can save people's lives, soothe their suffering, and enhance their welfare. IRBs demonstrably make decisions poorly. They cannot be expected to make decisions well, for they lack the expertise, ethical principles, legal rules, effective procedures, and accountability essential to good regulation. And IRBs are censors in the place censorship is most damaging-universities. In sum, Schneider argues that IRBs are bad regulation that inescapably do more harm than good. They were an irreparable mistake that should be abandoned so that research can be conducted properly and regulated sensibly.

U.S. military conflicts abroad have left nine million Americans dependent on the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) for medical care. Their "wounds of war" are treated by the largest hospital system in the country-one that has come under fire from critics in the White House, on Capitol Hill, and in the nation's media. In Wounds of War, Suzanne Gordon draws on five years of observational research to describe how the VHA does a better job than private sector institutions offering primary and geriatric care, mental health and home care services, and support for patients nearing the end of life. In the unusual culture of solidarity between patients and providers that the VHA has fostered, Gordon finds a working model for higher-quality health care and a much-needed alternative to the practice of for-profit medicine.

The work draws together a rich tapestry of material across many different disciplines, covering the crucial relationship between medicine and law from the early apothecaries to the modern-day general practitioner. It presents an invaluable overview of the subject and offers vital background reading to anyone interested in medico-legal medicine, as well as providing a springboard for students of medicine and law interested in researching the field through its remarkable diversity of reference resources.

In "The Case against Assisted Suicide: For the Right to End-of-Life Care," Dr. Kathleen Foley and Dr. Herbert Hendin uncover why pleas for patient autonomy and compassion, often used in favor of legalizing euthanasia, do not advance or protect the rights of terminally ill patients. Incisive essays by authorities in the fields of medicine, law, and bioethics draw on studies done in the Netherlands, Oregon, and Australia by the editors and contributors that show the dangers that legalization of assisted suicide would pose to the most vulnerable patients. Thoughtful and persuasive, this book urges the medical profession to improve palliative care and develop a more humane response to the complex issues facing those who are terminally ill.

Introduces key concepts and debates in health humanities and the health professions. Keywords for Health Humanities provides a rich, interdisciplinary vocabulary for the burgeoning field of health humanities and, more broadly, for the study of medicine and health. Sixty-five entries by leading international scholars examine current practices, ideas, histories, and debates around health and illness, revealing the social, cultural, and political factors that structure health conditions and shape health outcomes. Presenting possibilities for health justice and social change, this volume exposes readers—from curious beginners to cultural analysts, from medical students to health care practitioners of all fields—to lively debates about the complexities of health and illness and their ethical and political implications. A study of the vocabulary that comprises and shapes a broad understanding of health and the practices of healthcare, Keywords for Health Humanities guides readers toward ways to communicate accurately and effectively while engaging in creative analytical thinking about health and healthcare in an increasingly complex world—one in which seemingly straightforward beliefs and decisions about individual and communal health represent increasingly contested terrain.

Mark Graber looks at the history of abortion law in action to argue that the only defensible, constitutional approach to the issue is to afford all women equal choice - abortion should remain legal or bans should be strictly enforced. Steering away from metaphysical critiques of privacy, Graber compares the philosophical, constitutional, and democratic merits of the two systems of abortion regulation witnessed in the twentieth-century: pre-Roe v. Wade statutory prohibitions on abortion and Roe's ban on significant state interference with the market for safe abortion services. He demonstrates that before Roe, pro-life measures were selectively and erratically administered, thereby subverting our constitutional commitment to equal justice. Claiming that these measures would be similarly administered if reinstated, the author seeks to increase support for keeping abortion legal, even among those who have reservations about its morality. Abortion should remain legal, Graber argues, because statutory bans on abortion have a history of being enforced in ways that intentionally discriminate against poor persons and persons of color. In the years before Roe, the same law enforcement officials who routinely ignored and sometimes assisted those physicians seeking to terminate pregnancies for their private patients too often prevented competent abortionists from offering the same services to the general public. This double standard violated the fundamental human and constitutional right of equal justice under law, a right that has powerful roots in the American political tradition and that remains a major concern of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Coercion is one of the most fascinating and controversial subjects in psychiatry. It is a highly sensitive, and hotly debated topic in which clinical practice, ethics, the law and public policy converge. This book considers coercion within the healing and ethical framework of therapeutic relationships and partnerships at all levels, and addresses the universal problem of how to balance safety versus autonomy when dealing with psychiatric treatment.

"Coercive Treatment in Psychiatry" is a much needed contribution to the literature. The first three sections deal with the conceptual and clinical aspects of coercive treatment, the legal aspects and the ethical aspects of coercive treatment. In detail, these sections cover a broad spectrum of issues: coercion in institutions and in the community, coercive treatment and stigma, the definition of best practice standards for coercive treatment, de-escalation of risk situations, recent developments in mental health legislation, mental health care and patients' rights, cross-cultural perspectives on coercive treatment, historical injustice in psychiatry, and paternalism in mental health. The fourth section features users' views on coercive treatment: giving voice to an often-unheeded population. Finally, the book addresses the original topic of coercion and undue influence in decisions to participate in psychiatric research.

This book presents the first comprehensive review of the issue of coercion in psychiatry. With chapters written by the leading experts in the field, many of whom are renowned as clear thinkers and experienced clinicians, it may be seen as a starting point for international discussions and initiatives in this field aiming to minimize coercion.

Highly Commended in the Psychiatry section of the 2012 BMA Book Awards.

The upheavals of the NHS reforms have caused a great deal of stress and uncertainty in primary care, and professional development and support for general practitioners needs to take account of this. This book offers a group supervision model which can be used to develop the core competencies needed for GPs to make the new primary care organisations work. The book analyses how primary care professionals have dealt with the various reforms of the past decade, and picks apart the paralysing culture of politeness, conflict avoidance and rivalry for power, to reveal how at the core of reform is the struggle for each GP to construct a new professional identity which integrates medicine, management and politics.It proposes ways GPs can benefit from these experiences to become equipped with the necessary competencies to be active members or dynamic leaders in the new primary care organisations. The doctor-patient relationship is no longer one-to-one, but located within a group matrix, in the same way that a GP is now required to work within a group framework. This book enables GPs to develop the essential group skills they now need, and on which the success of the healthcare reforms ultimately depends. 'A challenging approach to understanding and supporting the individuals who make up the primary care workforce. Gerhard Wilke has drawn on his experiences to identify the reasons behind the 'dis-ease' felt by many practitioners, and to suggest models for improving their morale. This book will be of interest to practitioners working through the challenges of continuing 'top down' reorganisation of the NHS and responding to the reconfiguration of general practice partnerships into PCGs and PCTs.'

As medical litigation continues to increase, the best defence for doctors is to be aware of, and avoid, medical errors. This book focuses on the key legal issues including medical documentation, which reduce risk and liability when handled correctly. It contains chapters on difficult patients and special issues for emergency physicians. The case-based format demonstrates clinical relevance and useful examples are drawn from office, hospital and community settings. This book is the companion volume to Learning from Medical Errors: Clinical Problems which focuses on the most common clinical situations resulting in malpractice litigation. Learning from Medical Errors: Legal Issues is vital reading for all doctors, medical lecturers and teachers and medical lawyers.

Proposals have been put forward to replace the current paper Medicare cards, which display beneficiaries Social Security numbers, with electronically readable cards, and to issue electronically readable cards to providers as well. Electronically readable cards include cards with magnetic stripes and bar codes and smart cards that can process data. Proponents of such cards suggest that their use would bring a number of benefits to the program and Medicare providers, including reducing fraud through the authentication of beneficiary and provider identity at the point of care, furthering electronic health information exchange, and improving provider record keeping and reimbursement processes. This book evaluates the different functions and features of electronically readable cards; examines the potential benefits and limitations associated with the use of electronically readable cards in Medicare; examines the steps CMS and Medicare providers would need to take to implement and use electronically readable cards; and describes the lessons learned from the implementation and use of electronically readable cards in other countries.

The primary aim of this book is to provide clear and concise explanations about all aspects of the medico-legal process for surgeons, other doctors and lawyers. A wide range of topics is covered including: how the medico-legal arena is changing; the legal principles involved; how to avoid medico-legal problems; resolving complaints out of court; the surgeon as defendant; the surgeon as expert; the GMC and the Coroner.

For decades, manufacturers from around the world relied on asbestos from the town of Asbestos, Quebec, to produce fire-retardant products. Then, over time, people learned about the mineral's devastating effects on human health. Dependent on this deadly industry for their community's survival, the residents of Asbestos developed a unique, place-based understanding of their local environment; the risks they faced living next to the giant opencast mine; and their place within the global resource trade. This book unearths the local-global tensions that defined Asbestos's proud and painful history to reveal the challenges similar resource communities have faced - and continue to face today.

Mary Seacole: The Making of the Myth is the first book to challenge the popular misconceptions that surround Mary Seacole s iconic status as a pioneer nurse and battlefield heroine, intended, by some, to replace Florence Nightingale in those roles. McDonald masterfully disentangles reality from the myths, both those that exaggerate Seacole s work and ignore or denigrate Nightingale s. Drawing on the considerable primary sources available on both women, including letters and journal notes by officers, medical doctors and other observers during the Crimean War, as well as Seacole s own memoir, McDonald debunks claims that Seacole was the real heroine of the Crimean War and a pioneer of healthcare. Her book supports the recognition of Seacole for her life and work, but not as the decorated battlefield heroine as she is typically portrayed today."

This easy-to-read book explains the nuts and bolts of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 that clinicians need to understand and use in their daily practice. This Act now gives all clinicians the authority to provide medical care and treatment for people over 16 years of age who lack the capacity to consent for themselves. It covers: how to assess whether a person lacks capacity and how to clarify the threshold of decision-making incapacity; the range, scope and limitations of the various authorities to treat (including 'best interests' decisions, advance decisions and lasting powers of attorney); the range of safeguards in place (such as the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLs), the Court of Protection and Independent Mental Health Advocates); and relevant aspects of the Human Rights Act 1998, the Mental Health Act (including all recent amendments) and illustrative case law. There have been numerous developments in case law in the two years since the first edition. The second edition expands on clinically relevant issues from the courts, and assists in bridging the gap between court judgments and the frontline clinician.

In the 1800s, opium and cocaine could be easily obtained to treat a range of ailments. Drug dependency, when it occurred, was considered a matter of personal vice. Near the end of the century, attitudes shifted and access to drugs became more restricted. Dan Malleck reveals how different forces converged in the early 1900s to influence lawmakers and set the course for the drug laws that exist today. As this book shows, social concerns about drug addiction had less to do with the long pipe and shadowy den than with lobbying by medical professionals, concern about the morality and future of the nation, and a burgeoning pharmaceutical industry.

Dementia is a topic of enormous human, medical, economic, legal and ethical importance. Its importance grows as more of us live longer. The legal and ethical problems it raises are complex, intertwined and under-discussed. This book brings together contributions from clinicians, lawyers and ethicists - all of them world leaders in the field of dementia - and is a comprehensive, scholarly yet accessible library of all the main (and many of the fringe) perspectives. It begins with the medical facts: what is dementia? Who gets it? What are the current and future therapeutic and palliative options? What are the main challenges for medical and nursing care? The story is then taken up by the ethicists, who grapple with questions such as: is it legitimate to lie to dementia patients if that is a kind thing to do? Who is the person whose memory, preferences and personality have all been transformed by their disease? Should any constraints be placed on the sexual activity of patients? Are GPS tracking devices an unpardonable interference with the patient's freedom? These issues, and many more, are then examined through legal lenses. The book closes with accounts from dementia sufferers and their carers. It is the first and only book of its kind, and the authoritative text.

Reproductive donation is the most contentious area of assisted reproduction. Even within Europe there are wide variations in what is permitted in each country. This multi-disciplinary book takes a fresh look at the practices of egg, sperm and embryo donation and surrogacy, bringing together ethical analysis and empirical research. New evidence is offered on aspects of assisted reproduction and the families these create, including non-traditional types. One of the key issues addressed is should children be told of their donor origin? If they do learn the identity of their donor, what kinds of relationships may be forged between families, the donor and other donor sibling families? Should donation involve a gift relationship? Is intra-familial donation too close for comfort? How should we understand the growing trend for 'reproductive tourism'? This lively and informed discussion offers new insights into reproductive donation and the resulting donor families.

What are the moral challenges that confront doctors as they manage healthcare institutions? How do we build trust in medical organisations? How do we conceptualize moral action? Based on accounts given by senior doctors from organisations throughout the UK, this book discusses the issues medical leaders find most troubling and identifies the moral tensions they face. Moral Leadership in Medicine examines in detail how doctors protect patients' interests, implement morally controversial change, manage colleagues in difficulty and rebuild trust after serious medical harm. The book discusses how leaders develop moral narratives to make sense of these situations, how they behave while balancing conflicting moral goals and how they influence those around them to do the right thing in difficult circumstances. Based on empirical ethical analysis, this volume is essential reading for clinicians in leadership roles and students and academics in the fields of healthcare management, medical law and healthcare ethics.