BOX 14 Some key medico-legal topics in core learning
Human rights in health care (including equality legislation) Criteria for clinical negligence
Confidentiality and disclosure requirements Information law and access to health records Criteria for consent Criteria for capacity
Treatment decisions for adults lacking capacity Compulsory treatment in mental health care Age of legal capacity Parental responsibility
Children and treatment decisions Child protection obligations Regulation in termination of pregnancy Regulation in fertility services
Treatment decisions relating to the end of life Death certification and post-mortem examinations
Essential learning in areas that frequently pose medico-legal difficulties for doctors will generally include the difference between explicit and implied consent; what limits of treatment are permissible when consent is implied; the different uses of verbal and written consent; the circumstances where written consent may be a legal requirement; the necessity of good record-keeping, and documenting details of discussions between the doctor and the patient; and the importance of obtaining consent carefully when conducting an intimate examination, as well as ensuring the presence of a chaperone.
In addition to student learning in the areas covered by relevant healthcare law, a theoretical strand will include an understanding of the structure of the legal system; the distinction between public (criminal) and private (civil) law; the standards of proof required; the different strata of courts; the sources of law in the forms of statute (plus accompanying legislation and codes of practice) and case law; the non-static nature of law; and the concept of precedent in judicial decisions, as well as the significance of judicial authority in specifying how the law bears upon a particular case. It is also valuable for students to understand how court hearings are conducted, such as in the occasions when doctors are required to provide evidence on the treatment that was received by a patient. As with the detail of philosophical theories, similarly medical law in a professional ethics frame is probably not the educational context for learning in academic jurisprudence and casuistic reasoning.
Habits
It was noted in Section 2 that the etymology of ‘ethics’ relates to ‘ethos’, meaning character, disposition, or habits. The ethics of character (also known as dispositional, aretaic, or virtue ethics) is viewed as an alternative to deontic ethics based on principles, and deals with the ethical nature of persons as individuals rather than taking as a starting point the ethical status of their practice. In the context of professional ethics in medicine, according to Pellegrino & Thomasma (1993), a virtue-based approach to ethics will
20 Guide 53: Ethics and Law in the Medical Curriculum
It is also valuable for students to understand how court hearings are conducted, such as in the occasions when doctors are required to provide evidence on the treatment that was received by a patient.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52