Bioethics + Ethical decision making

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: The four principles of Beauchamp and Childress--autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence and justice--have been extremely influential in the field of medical ethics, and are fundamental for understanding the current approach to ethical assessment in health care. This study tests whether these principles can be quantitatively measured on an individual level, and then subsequently if they are used in the decision making process when individuals are faced with ethical dilemmas...

The evaluation of medical decision-making capacity and provision of emergency treatment in the acute care setting may present a significant challenge for both physicians-in-training and attending physicians. Although absolutely essential to the proper care of patients, recalling criteria for decision-making capacity may prove cumbersome during a medical emergency. Likewise, the requirements for providing emergency treatment must be fulfilled. This article presents a mnemonic (CURVES: Choose and Communicate, Understand, Reason, Value, Emergency, Surrogate) that addresses the abilities a patient must possess in order to have decision-making capacity, as well as the essentials of emergency treatment...