The English expression ‘human dignity’ consists of the predicate ‘human’ and the noun ‘dignity’. The adjective qualifies the noun, thus determining the kind of dignity in question as the human kind. The adjective has a similar function in the expression ‘human being’: Here it qualifies the noun ‘being’, to determine the kind of being in question as a being of the human kind. ‘Human’ is etymolog...

The panic occasioned by the birth of Dolly sent international and national bodies and their representatives scurrying for principles with which to allay imagined public anxiety. It is instructive to note that principles are things of which such people and bodies so often seem to be bereft. The search for appropriate principles turned out to be difficult since so many aspects of the Dolly case w...

Respect for patients’ privacy and dignity and the maintenance of confidentiality are long established principles of medical practice. The General Medical Council has emphasised that treating patients and families politely is important in establishing and maintaining their trust. 2 Recent technological advances have changed the focus of privacy and confidentiality issues towards patients’ identi...