What are the ethical obligations when a colleague has provided suboptimal care?

Dental ethics case 17. What are my obligations and ethical responsibilities when treating patients with HIV?

A 20 year old female patient presented with recurrent ulcers in and around her mouth that have not been amenable to treatment. Intra-oral examination revealed multiple creamy-white lesions on her mouth, cheeks and buccal mucosa. The dentist suspected that the recurrent ulcers and candidiasis were oral manifestations of HIV and wondered whether he could refuse to treat her. He then decided to co...

When Periodic Timetables Are Suboptimal

Social dominance, school bullying, and child health: what are our ethical obligations to the very young?

BACKGROUND Recent research shows that by age 5, children form rigid social hierarchies, with some children consistently subordinated, and then later, bullied. Further, several studies suggest that enduring mental and physical harm follow. It is time to analyze the health burdens posed by early social dominance and to consider the ethical implications of ongoing socially caused harms. METHODS ...

Dental ethics case 25: the drug-abusing patient--what are my ethical obligations to treat?

A very agitated and nervous 20-year-old presented with severe dental pain, bad breath and complaining about his poor dental appearance. A comprehensive intraoral and radiographic examination revealed 22 carious and erosion lesions. He reported using methamphetamine for the better part of five years and had not experienced problems with the teeth prior to using the drug. The patient’s medical an...

What alternatives has minimally invasive surgery provided the surgeon?

When a new technology bursts on the horizon and reenergizes a field that has seemed to be flagging, as minimally invasive surgery has done for the field of general surgery, many enthusiasts rapidly embrace the discipline. Questions should arise, however, as to what novelty has really been introduced, where it should fit in our treatment of patients, and, when the dust settles, what alternatives...