Assessment of surgery residents' knowledge of medical ethics and law. Implications for training and education.

Medical ethics and law are essential topics that should be included in medical residency programs. However, surgery training programs in Iran lack a specific course in medical ethics and law, which can lead to patient dissatisfaction with surgical outcomes. This study aimed to assess surgery residents' knowledge of medical ethics and law and suggest improvements for future residency programs. This descriptive cross-sectional study involved 112 surgery residents from six teaching hospitals. A valid and reliable questionnaire comprising 15 items on medical ethics and 12 items on medical law was used to assess participants' knowledge. Most participants were female (31-40 years old), and their mean knowledge score for medical ethics was 3.26±0.53 out of 5, with the lowest score in "futile treatment and DNR orders." The mean knowledge score for medical law was 3.69±0.69, with the lowest score in "surrogate decision-maker." Age did not affect residents' knowledge, but gender did, with female residents demonstrating significantly better knowledge of medical ethics (3.344/5 vs. 3.112/5) and law (3.789/5 vs. 3.519/5). Surgery residents had a relatively favorable knowledge of medical ethics and law, but they require further training in some areas to improve their knowledge. Training should include journal clubs, role-play programs, standardized patient programs, and debates to achieve better results, as purely didactic lectures appear inadequate.

Assessment of patients' awareness of their rights in teaching hospitals in Iran.

INTRODUCTION: Respecting patients' rights is an essential component in health care. Passing a regulation is not a guarantee for the protection of patients' rights. This article aimed to assess patients' awareness of the contents of the Patient's Bill of Rights in Iran and to determine if they had received a service compatible with their rights charter. METHODS: This is a descriptive study in 202 hospitalised patients. A questionnaire was used, and associations between variables were examined using Pearson's correlation test. The significance level was p < .05. RESULTS: The patients' ages ranged from 18 to 87 years of age, 33% were male and 79% were married. Patients' knowledge was lowest regarding the need for consent for the treatment process and was highest regarding the patient's right to know the expertise of the treatment team. The mean of patients' knowledge was 77.56%. As for patients' exercising their rights, the highest score belonged to the patient's right for attending doctors and treatment team's confidentiality; the lowest score belonged to the right to receive necessary information about probable complications, other treatment options and participation in the final selection of treatment method. The mean score of patient satisfaction was 8.06 (out of 11). There was no significant relationship with their education level or the number of admissions. CONCLUSION: Health-care professionals can provide care based on patients' rights, and their knowledge of patients' rights needs to be evaluated. Educational programmes, leaflets, booklets and posters can be helpful in this regard. In addition, professional organisations and the Ministry of Health need to be more sensitive to this issue.