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Protection of Conscience Project

www.consciencelaws.org

Service, not Servitude
Periodicals & Papers

1980-1984

1984

Butler JL. Balancing moral beliefs and job responsibilities in pharmacy. Am J Hosp Pharm 1984 Dec;41(12):2584  PMID: 11644176

J.L. Butler

Fortin J.  [Collaboration, dissidence and withdrawal. Possible dilemmas in nursing practice] Nurs Que 1984 May-Jun;4(4):32-7 [Article in French] PMID: 6564447

J. Fortin

Garwood J. Matters of conscience: trapped by the system. Nurs Mirror 1984 Mar 7;158(10):26   PMID: 6561609

J. Garwood

Gol'denberg MA The principle of freedom of conscience and its clerical interpreters. Soviet Sociology, Summer, 1984.¤

M.A. Gol'denberg

  • In the contemporary ideological struggle, problems of human rights and freedom of conscience have become increasingly acute in recent years. Bourgeois ideologists, who call the capitalist world the "free world" or the "world of democracy," try to insist upon the notion that freedom and democracy are absent in socialist countries. It is no accident that in the stream of such falsification, the Marxist-Leninist principle of freedom of conscience and its realization in the socialist countries is notably distorted. Clerical writers take advantage of the fact that although religion is in a state of crisis, it continues to have an effect on the broad masses. Naturally, many believers in the West are inclined to react with oversensitivity to daily assertions that in the Soviet Union the freedom of conscience of adherents of various religions is subject to systematic repression. . .

Hulsebosch H. [The Law Pregnancy Interruption and the consequences for the nurse burdened by conscience]Tijdschr Ziekenverpl 1984 Nov 27;37(24):754-7  [Article in Dutch]  PMID: 6570378

H. Hulsebosch

J Med Ethics 1984 Dec;10(4):171-2, 190 (Editorial) Conscience, virtue, integrity and medical ethics. PMID: 6520848 ¤

  • It is sometimes claimed that 'new fangled' philosophical medical ethics is unnecessary and indeed that it is positively disadvantageous, leading too often 'to abstract and inconclusive intellectual argument - neither conducive to postprandial reflection nor necessarily relevant to the insistent demands on the busy practitioner throughout his day'. Particularly in medical education, as Osler so quaintly put it, 'What have bright eyes red blood quick breath and taut muscles to do with philosophy?' Rather, clinicians so often claim, all that's needed for medical ethics is a sound conscience, good character, and integrity.

First, and vitally, it is important to affirm that few if any moral philosophers, let alone those who are specifically interested in medical ethics, would deny that sound conscience, good character and integrity are essential to moral life in general and medicomoral life in particular. But as soon as attempts are made to explain what is meant by these claims the need for some sort of critical philosophical analysis becomes apparent. . .

Kenny M. Matters of conscience: all in the line of duty?  Nurs Mirror 1984 May 16;158(20):22-3 PMID: 6562623

M. Kenny

Langslow A. Duty and conscience. Aust Nurses J 1984 Aug;14(2):56-8  PMID: 6566561 ¤

Amelda Langslow

  • This interesting letter, written by a nurse, arrived recently: "A 50-year-old comatose male patient was admitted and a diagnosis of diabetic ketoacidosis was made. A Jehovah's Witness, he wore a bracelet stating his desire not to receive blood. After five days of intensive care, his haemoglobin level was found to be only seven, and the decision was made to give him three units of blood. This was done at night with relatives absent but the patient died two days later without having gained consciousness. Should nursing staff refuse to hang blood knowing the orders given by doctors to be ethically wrong?" . . .

Robinson J.   Matters of conscience: the other side of the question. Nurs Mirror 1984 May 16;158(20):20-1 PMID: 6562622

J. Robinson


1983

Bardsley B. Nurs Mirror 1983 May 25;156(21):12-3 Matters of conscience: the morning after, the night before.  PMID: 6552614

B. Bardsley

Carr A. Matters of conscience: should a nurse report a nurse? Nurs Mirror 1983 Mar 23;156(12):26 PMID: 6550910

A. Carr

Canavan F. Hum Life Rev 1983 Fall;9(4):21-4 On being personally opposed. PMID: 11655591

F. Canavan

Connelly J.E. Paternalism and the physician's conscience. Ann Intern Med 1983 Aug;99(2):276-7 (Letter)  PMID: 6881786

Julia E. Connelly

  • I read Dr. Thomasma's article with skepticism. All models for the doctor-patient relationship are shortsighted as they do not acknowledge systems of relationships beyond that of the physician and the patient. Despite this inherent shortcoming, Thomasma's model contains two characteristics that distinguish it from other such models. Both the strength of his physician conscience model and its greatest limitations exist in these two characteristics. First, his model requires that physicians assess beliefs, attitudes, and emotions they recognize in response to their patients in an effort to determine how these factors influence the health care they provide. Second, his model requires bidirectional communications between patients and physicians. In neither the autonomy nor the paternalistic model are these features essential. . .

Curtin LL. A nurse's conscience.  Nurs Manage 1983 Feb;14(2):7-8 PMID: 6549816

Leah L. Curtin

. . . In 1919 the noted American jurist Harlah Fiske Stone; put it th is way; " ... liberty of conscience has a moral and social value which makes it worthy of preservation at the hands of the state. So deep is its significance and vital, indeed, is it to the integrity of man's moral and spiritual nature that nothing short of the self-preservation of the state should warrant its violation; and it may well be questioned whether the scate which preserves its life by a settled policy of violation of the conscience of the individual will not, in face, lose it by the same process." Thus, legal space was created for conscientious objectors to military service even in times of war, and federal and state statutes were passed to protect health professionals who have conscientious objections to certain procedlires (abortion a'nd sterilization). . .

Goodwin S. Matters of conscience: open secrets. Nurs Mirror 1983 Jun 29;156(26):22 PMID: 6553870

S. Goodwin

Henry C. Matters of conscience: the ethics of ethics. Nurs Mirror 1983 Jun 15;156(24):30  PMID: 6552649

C. Henry

Luxton R. Matters of conscience: no right to play God. Nurs Mirror 1983 Oct 5;157(14):40-1  PMID: 6556611

R. Luxton

Newson K. Matters of conscience: too many followers among too few leaders.  Nurs Mirror 1983 May 25;156(21):21-2 PMID: 6552617

K. Newson

Reissmann H.  Matters of conscience. Make a conscious effort. Nurs Mirror 1983 Dec 14;157(24):36-7PMID: 6558650

H. Reissman

Rowe J. Matters of conscience. No such thing as a free lunch. Nurs Mirror 1983 Apr 6;156(14):13  PMID: 6551878

J. Rowe

Schlund GH.   [Duty of the gynecologist to inform a pregnant patient about the need for or desirability of amniocentesis] Geburtshilfe Frauenheilkd 1983 Nov;43(11):699-700[Article in German] PMID: 6557982

G.H. Schlund

  • Abstract: When a woman above age 35 even a multiparous women asks her obstetrician about the necessity or desirability of a genetic amniocentesis the obstetrician is obliged to inform the patient comprehensively about the risks of amniocentesis and the advantages of amniocentesis. Advantages are detection of chromosomal abnormalities, risks are premature rupture of the membranes or abortion. The obstetricians contract obliges him to recommend or not recommend such tests. If the obstetrician does not give the information to the patient because he is not familiar with the newest scientific standards or because his personal conscience is against amniocentesis because of the possibility of a subsequent eugenic therapeutic abortion the obstetrician must refer the patient to another obstetrician. If the obstetrician does not inform the parents he is liable for the total cost of maintaining a mongoloid infant.

Thomasma DC.  Beyond medical paternalism and patient autonomy: a model of physician conscience for the physician-patient relationship. Ann Intern Med 1983 Feb;98(2):243-8  PMID: 6824259

David C. Thomasma

  • Medical paternalism lies at the heart of traditional medicine. In an effort to counteract the effects of this paternalism, medical ethicists and physicians have proposed a model of patient autonomy for the physician-patient relationship. However, neither paternalism or autonomy are adequate characterizations of the physician-patient relationship. Paternalism does not respect the rights of adults to self-determination, and autonomy does not respect the principle of beneficence that leads physicians to argue that acting on behalf of others is essential to t heir craft. A model of physician conscience is proposed that summarizes the best features of both models-paternalism and autonomy.

White A. Matters of conscience. Resuscitation: merely preserving life? Nurs Mirror 1983 Dec 7;157(23):40-1  PMID: 6558629

A. White


1982

Beardshaw V.  A question of conscience. Nurs Times 1982 Mar 3-9;78(9):349-51PMID: 6917236

V. Beardshaw

Bingley W, Gostin L. Nurs Mirror 1982 Sep 22;155(12):11 A question of conscience. It's time to make amends. PMID: 6923322

W. Bingley, L. Gostin

Buchanan M. Nursing with conscience. RNABC News 1982 Jan-Feb;14(1):12 PMID: 6916453

M. Buchanan

Durham WC, Wood MA, Condie SJ. Accommodation of conscientious objection to abortion: a case study of the nursing profession. Brigh Young Univ Law Rev 1982;1982(2):253-370  PMID: 11655680 ¤

W. Cole Durham Jr., Mary Anne Q. Wood, Spencer J. Condie

  • For the most part, controversy surrounding the abortion issue has focused on the characters with the leading roles in the drama: the pregnant woman, the state,' and to a lesser extent, the consulting physician.' Scant attention has been paid to the rights of the background figures and stagehands-the residents, hospital administrators, nurses, and other medical personnel who may be confronted either during their training or as professionals with difficult decisions about participation in abortions.3 This Article explores the attitudes of the largest single subclassification of medical personnel-the nursing profession-toward such issues. Our effort has been to measure as accurately as possible the attitudes of nurses toward participation in abortion procedures;4 to identify the areas in which the greatest practical difficulties occur, both for the nurses themselves and for those under or with whom they work;5 and to evaluate the adequacy of existing legal protections and institutional accommodation practices in light of the findings.' . . .

1981

Amundsen DW. Trans Stud Coll Physicians Phila 1981 Mar;3(1):22-39 (Historical Article) Casuistry and professional obligations: the regulation of physicians by the court of conscience in the late Middle Ages.  PMID: 7020164

Darrel W. Amundsen

Amundsen DW. Trans Stud Coll Physicians Phila 1981 Jun;3(2):93-112 (Historical Article) Casuistry and professional obligations: the regulation of physicians by the court of conscience in the late Middle Ages. Part II.  PMID: 7025367

Darrel W. Amundsen

Nurs Life 1981 Jul-Aug;1(1):15 Court case: should your conscience be your guide? PMID: 6973716


1980

Sheehan MC, Munro JG, Ryan JG. Attitudes of medical practitioners towards abortion: a Queensland study. Aust Fam Physician 1980 Aug;9(8):565-70 PMID: 7213249

M.C. Sheehan, J.G. Munro, J.G. Ryan

  • Abstract:  Sixty-seven per cent of medical practitioners registered in Queensland responded to a survey on their attitudes to the laws relating to abortion and sterilization in that State. Of all respondents, 79 per cent wanted some degree of liberalization of abortion laws. Personal characteristics such as age, sex and religion practised (if any) were found to influence doctors' opinions. Practice characteristics also influenced opinions; general practitioners were more in favour of liberalization than were specialists, and self-employed doctors were more in favour than were doctors working in hospitals or other institutional settings.

Watt J. Conscience and responsibility. Br Med J 1980 Dec 20-27;281(6256):1687-8   PMID: 7448574

James Watt

  • Those of us who have followed the editorial policy of the British Medical J7ournal during the past decade will have noticed increasing emphasis on ethical problems. They are posed by the changing character of medical practice in response to rapid technological advance, the pressures of public opinlion ultimately reflected in more liberal legislation, and the deficiencies of a comprehensive National Health Service grappling with the problem of finite resources and infinite demand which confront the doctor with conflicting moral choices. . .The problem is that while the doctor is bound by that code to act responsibly towards his patient, the patient, whose expectations have been immoderately fuelled by the media operating under a code determined by the contemporary mores of our increasingly profane society, is under no obligation to reciprocate. Therein lies the doctor's moral dilemma between his conscience and his responsibility. . .