Both the doctor and the patient have rights to terminate an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) device for reasons of futility or autonomy Implantable devices have a long history in medicine ...

Neuroscience and technological medicine in general increasingly faces us with the imminent reality of cyborgs—integrated part human and part machine complexes. If my brain functions in a way that is ...

The Urdu and Pashto term ghairat is often translated into English as ‘honour’, but this translation fails to capture its full ethical depth and cultural specificity. In South Asian and Muslim-majority ...

Conduit or conductor? Physician providers’ descriptions of their role as MAiD assessors in the first years after legalisation in Canada ...

The development of brain organoids and use of human embryonic neural structures for research each raise distinct ethical considerations that require careful analysis. We propose that rather than ...

Having a medical student present in a consultation is often seen as an imposition on the patient, with the key ethical concerns being around confidentiality and respect for the patient’s dignity. The ...

An ethical and legal obligation generally exists for informed consent to be obtained prior to the administration of medical interventions. This includes vaccinations. For an individual’s informed ...

All over the world, women live longer lives than men. Accordingly, women make up the majority of the oldest age cohorts. This means that if health services for young people are prioritised over health ...

Zohny et al provide a proof of concept for large language model (LLM)-patient communication in medical decision-making, discussing some of the risks and potential downsides of implementing this ...

Decisions for patients in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) are made under the auspices of the shared decision-making model, which uses the best interests standard as a guide. Decisions made ...

Chervenak and McCullough, authors of the most acknowledged ethical framework for maternal–fetal surgery, rely on the ‘ethical–obstetrical’ concept of the fetus as a patient in order to determine what ...

The amended Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill (published 28 March 2025) proposes a new law allowing assisted dying in England and Wales. It acknowledges the need for safeguards to ensure that ...