Ethics Consultation: A Practical Guide

Ethics Consultation and Autonomy

Services of ethics consultants are nowadays commonly used in such various spheres of life as engineering, public administration, business, law, health care, journalism, and scientific research. It has however been maintained that use of ethics consultants is incompatible with personal autonomy; in moral matters individuals should be allowed to make their own decisions. The problem this criticis...

Ethics consultation on demand: concepts, practical experiences and a case study.

Despite the increasing interest in clinical ethics, ethics consultation as a professional service is still rare in Europe. In this paper I refer to examples in the United States. In Germany, university hospitals and medical faculties are still hesitant about establishing yet another "committee". One of the reasons for this hesitation lies in the ignorance that exists here about how to provide m...

Triggers for research ethics consultation.

Research ethics consultation services are designed to help scientists address ethical and societal issues that may not be considered in the context of existing regulatory frameworks, such as institutional review boards. Here, we identify some types of biomedical research for which the research process can benefit from consultation with ethicists.

Ethics consultation and "facilitated" consensus.

Four ways people approach ethics. A practical guide to reaching consensus on moral problems.

Most people use four different approaches when making ethical decisions. Some people use one approach predominantly; others vary their approaches according to circumstances. In either case, the approaches are usually chosen unconsciously. The main source of conflict in decision making is the fact that two parties have chosen different approaches. The four approaches are: The principle approach,...