Does professional orientation predict ethical sensitivities? Attitudes of paediatric and obstetric specialists toward fetuses, pregnant women and pregnancy termination.
J Med Ethics
; 40(2): 117-22, 2014 Feb.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-23572566
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
To determine (1) whether fetal care paediatric (FCP) and maternal-fetal medicine (MFM) specialists harbour differing attitudes about pregnancy termination for congenital fetal conditions, their perceived responsibilities to pregnant women and fetuses, and the fetus as a patient and (2) whether self-perceived primary responsibilities to fetuses and women and views about the fetus as a patient are associated with attitudes about clinical care.METHODS:
Mail survey of 434 MFM and FCP specialists (response rates 60.9% and 54.2%, respectively).RESULTS:
MFMs were more likely than FCPs to disagree with these statements (all p values<0.005) (1) 'the presence of a fetal abnormality is not an appropriate reason for a couple to consider pregnancy termination' (MFM FCP-78.4% vs 63.5%); (2) 'the effects that a child born with disabilities might have on marital and family relationships is not an appropriate reason for a couple to consider pregnancy termination' (MFM FCP-80.5% vs 70.2%); and (3) 'the cost of healthcare for the future child is not an appropriate reason for a couple to consider pregnancy termination' (MFM FCP-73.5% vs 55.9%). 65% MFMs versus 47% FCPs disagreed that their professional responsibility is to focus primarily on fetal well-being (p<0.01). Specialists did not differ regarding the fetus as a separate patient. Responses about self-perceived responsibility to focus on fetal well-being were associated with clinical practice attitudes.CONCLUSIONS:
Independent of demographic and sociopolitical characteristics, FCPs and MFMs possess divergent ethical sensitivities regarding pregnancy termination, pregnant women and fetuses, which may influence clinical care.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Médicos
/
Anormalidades Congênitas
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Atitude do Pessoal de Saúde
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Casamento
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Aborto Induzido
/
Pessoas com Deficiência
/
Gestantes
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Relações Familiares
/
Feto
Tipo de estudo:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
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Middle aged
/
Pregnancy
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Med Ethics
Ano de publicação:
2014
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos