El documento de voluntades anticipadas. Comparativa de la legislación actual en el marco de la Unión Europea / Advance Directives. Comparison of current legislation within the European Union

La Ley 41/2002, de 14 de noviembre, básica reguladora de la autonomía del paciente da valor legal vinculante a las voluntades anticipadas (VA) en España. Sin embargo, la situación en cada país de la Unión Europea es distinta y desconocida para la mayoría del personal sanitario. Para conocer esas diferencias, se realizó una recogida y estudio de las distintas legislaciones en materia de derechos del paciente, y se estableció una comparativa actualizada de las características que cada país otorga a las VA. De los 28 países de la Unión Europea, 15 han desarrollado legislación específica en materia de VA, y le otorgan carácter vinculante el 86% si se utiliza la formulación escrita. Siete países exigen formalización del documento de voluntades anticipadas (DVA) ante notario, testigos o ante representantes de la Administración. La figura del representante se contempla en 11 países. En 3 países existe un registro de VA, mientras que en el resto el DVA solo se incluye en la historia clínica. En 5 países se exige la revisión periódica del documento, que pierde validez pasado este periodo de vigencia. Todas las legislaciones prevén modificaciones y la revocación de las VA. El contenido de las VA suele referirse al rechazo de medidas de soporte y limitación de tratamiento, aunque las solicitudes de tratamiento específico se contemplan como orientativas. La legislación sobre VA en la Unión Europea es muy diversa, con múltiples connotaciones específicas en cada país. Sería deseable una legislación más homogénea, divulgada y aplicada, de acuerdo con la sociedad actual. (AU)

Advance Directives (AD) have been legally binding in Spain since the publication of Act 41/2002, of 14th November, which regulates patients’ rights to autonomy and obligations concerning clinical information and recording clinical information. However, the situation in each country of the European Union remains heterogeneous and unknown to most health care professionals. By collecting and studying the legislation on patients’ rights in European Union countries we have made an updated comparison of the different features of AD in each country.Only 15 of the 28 European Union Countries have developed specific rules on AD which makes them legally binding in 86% of cases if they are written. A formal Advance Directive signed before a notary, a civil officer or a witness, is required in only 7 countries. The designation of a patient's attorney for health matters is regulated in 11 of the countries. There is an AD Register in 3 countries, whereas in the other countries it is only included in the medical record. Regular revision of an advance directive document, to maintain its validity, is required in five countries. All legislations provide for amendments and the revocation of AD, as they forbid unlawful actions. Rejection of routine supportive measures and treatment limitation are the main content of AD, although specific treatment applications are viewed as guidance. There seem to be many differences between laws concerning AD among the European Union Countries. A more homogeneous legislation, publicized and applied within the wider social consensus, would be desirable. (AU)

Ideología y ética de la voluntad. Una base para la reflexión bioética / Ideology and free will. A reflecion for bioethics

Este artículo trata sobre la ética de la voluntad que tiene su origen en las ideologías modernas de nuestro siglo. La voluntad, convertida en deseo, se vuelve sobre sí misma para acrecentar su propio poder. La ética de la voluntad se funda en la decisión de un individuo, que prioriza su voluntad sobre la razón y encuentra muchos obstáculos para actuar libremente. Kant para evitar en la moral los límites de una voluntad arbitraria, distingue al sujeto empírico, determinado por sus apetitos, del sujeto moral o racional, con una voluntad libre de condicionamientos. La ética de la voluntad es un reflejo del sujeto empírico kantiano y las ideologías vigentes. Frente a las ideologías se propone la vuelta a la tradición clásica, una ética que reflexiona sobre la vida humana y la realización del hombre en el mundo

This article is about the ethics of the will that is caused by modern ideologie of our century. The will, becomes desire, turns on itself to increase its own power. The ethics of the will is based on the decision of an individual, which prioritizes its will over reason and find many obstacles to act freely. Kant to avoid the moral limits of an arbitrary will, distinguishes the empirical subject, determined by their appetites, from the moral or rational subject, with a free will of conditioning. The ethics of the will is a reflection of Kant’s empirical subject and current ideologies. Against ideologies the classical tradition is proposed, an ethic that reflects on human life and the realization of man in the world

[Voluntary Refusal of Food and Fluid in palliative care: a mapping literature review]. / Freiwilliger Verzicht auf Nahrung und Flüssigkeit in der Palliative Care: ein Mapping Review.

Voluntary Refusal of Food and Fluid (VRFF) is one possibility for patients in palliative situations to hasten death and avoid further suffering. By means of a mapping literature review this article describes the medical, nursing, ethical and legal perspective of care for people who wish to hasten death using VRFF. The results show that the wish to die is affected by psychological, social, spiritual and physical factors. VRFF is a little-known, legal and independently viable method to hasten death. Reducing fluid intake to 40 ml daily, the dying process takes one to three weeks. VRFF can be regarded as a natural death, foregoing treatment or as suicide. In contrast to physician assisted suicide or euthanasia, patients dying by VRFF experience a "natural" dying process and the decision is reversible in the first few days. As authority to act lies with the person wishing to die professionals and family caring for the dying are practicing palliative care, as opposed to assisted suicide or euthanasia. Professionals and family involved in the decision-making process are confronted with various ethical problems. Further research concerning VRFF and its implications for practice is necessary.

An ethical analysis of opt-out HIV screening for pregnant women.

Critical advances in prevention of mother-to-child-transmission (MTCT) of the HIV in the perinatal period have changed practice recommendations for HIV screening for pregnant women. Using case studies we illustrate the ethical complexities and implications of opt-out HIV testing for pregnant women. Despite the potential for compromised informed consent, an opt-out HIV screening approach is ethically defensible.

Salvaging the concept of nudge.

In recent years, 'nudge' theory has gained increasing attention for the design of population-wide health interventions. The concept of nudge puts a label on efficacious influences that preserve freedom of choice without engaging the influencees' deliberative capacities. Given disagreements over what it takes genuinely to preserve freedom of choice, the question is whether health influences relying on automatic cognitive processes may preserve freedom of choice in a sufficiently robust sense to be serviceable for the moral evaluation of actions and policies. In this article, I offer an argument to this effect, explicating preservation of freedom of choice in terms of choice-set preservation and noncontrol. I also briefly explore the healthcare contexts in which nudges may have priority over more controlling influences.

Factors related to voluntary parental decision-making in pediatric oncology.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the current study was to examine demographic and contextual correlates of voluntariness in parents making research or treatment decisions for their children with cancer. METHODS: Participants included 184 parents of children with cancer who made a decision about enrolling the child in a research or treatment protocol within the previous 10 days. Parents completed questionnaires that assessed voluntariness, external influence by others, concern that the child's care would be negatively affected if the parent did not agree, time pressure, information adequacy, and demographics. RESULTS: Lower perceived voluntariness was associated with lower education, male gender, minority status, and not having previous experience with a similar decision. Parents who reported lower voluntariness also perceived more external influence and time pressure, had more concern about the child's care being negatively affected if they declined, and perceived that they had either too much or not enough information about the decision. In a multivariate regression, education, minority status, gender, external influence, and too little information remained significantly associated with voluntariness. CONCLUSIONS: Several groups of parents appear to be at risk for decreased voluntariness when making research or treatment decisions for their seriously ill children, including fathers, nonwhite parents, and those with less education. Parental voluntariness may be enhanced by helping parents to mitigate the effects of unhelpful or unwanted influences by others and ensuring that their information needs are met.

Documento de voluntades anticipadas: opinión de los profesionales sanitarios de Atención Primaria / Advanced Directives Document: opinion of the primary health care professionals

Objetivo: Conocer la opinión de los profesionales sanitarios de la Atención Primaria (AP) sobre el Documento de Voluntades Anticipadas (DVA). Diseño. Estudio descriptivo transversal. Emplazamiento. Seis centros de salud de Tenerife. Sujetos. Médicos, enfermeros y residentes de medicina familiar y comunitaria. Método; Los participantes recibieron información escrita sobre el DVA junto con un cuestionario de seis preguntas cerradas diseñado específicamente. Resultados. Participaron un total de 113 profesionales (38,7% médicos; 22,6% residentes de Medicina Familiar y 38,7% enfermeros). El 60,6% fueron mujeres. La media de edad fue de 38,59 años (desviación típica [DT]: 9,4) y la media de experiencia laboral de 14,68 años (DT: 10,24). El 68,1% de los participantes conocía la posibilidad de realizar el DVA. El 70% respondió que el paciente debería tener la iniciativa de hablar sobre el DVA. Un 53,2% consideró la consulta de AP como el entorno adecuado, existiendo diferencias según la categoría profesional (residentes: 70,8%, enfermeros: 48,7% y médicos de AP 46,3%; p = 0,005) y según los años de experiencia laboral (menos de 15 años: 66,88%, más de 15 años: 36,84%; p = 0,05). Un 60,7% se sentiría cómodo abordando el tema. Las principales dificultades se encontraron al hablar de la muerte con el paciente (52,2%) o explicar trámites administrativos (45,1%). Conclusiones. El DVA es conocido por más de la mitad de los profesionales de AP, prefiriendo que sea el paciente el que tome la iniciativa. El considerar la consulta de AP el entorno adecuado para hablar del DVA es bien valorado, sobre todo por los profesionales con menos años de experiencia (AU)

Objective. To know primary care (PC) health professional´s opinion about advanced directives (AD). Design. Cross sectional, descriptive study. SETTING. Six health care centres in Tenerife. Participants. Primary care physicians, nurses and family medicine residents. Methods. Participants received written information on the AD along with a questionnaire that consisted of six closedended questions specially designed for this study. Results. 113 professionals participated (38,7% PC physicians, 22,6% family medicine residents and 38,7% nurses). 60,7% were women. The mean age was 38,59 years (SD: 9,4) and the average number of years of work experience was 14,68% (SD: 10,24). Over 68,1% knew the possibility of performing an AD. About 70% answered that patients take the initiative in discussing AD. Fifty-three percent considered a primary care visit as a suitable opportunity to discuss AD, but there were differences according to professional category (residents physicians: 70,8%, nurses: 48,7%, PC physicians: 46,3%, p = 0,005) and years of working experience (<15 years: 66,8%, >15 years: 36,84%, p = 0,05). Over 60,7% felt comfortable dealing with this subject. The main difficulties were found when talking about death with the patient (52,2%) or explaining administrative procedures (45,1%). Conclusions : More than a half of the primary care professionals knew AD, and they preferred patients to take the initiative regarding this subject. Considering primary care visit a suitable moment to discuss AD is well appreciated, especially by those professionals with less experience (AU)

Should we select for genetic moral enhancement? A thought experiment using the MoralKinder (MK+) haplotype.

By using preimplantation haplotype diagnosis, prospective parents are able to select embryos to implant through in vitro fertilization. If we knew that the naturally-occurring (but theoretical) MoralKinder (MK+) haplotype would predispose individuals to a higher level of morality than average, is it permissible or obligatory to select for the MK+ haplotype? I.e., is it moral to select for morality? This paper explores the various potential issues that could arise from genetic moral enhancement.

Las directivas anticipadas en España: contenido, límites y aplicaciones clínicas / Advance directives in Spain: contents, limits and clinical applications

A partir de 2002 se ha producido en España un gran desarrollo legislativo de las directivas anticipadas. Todas las comunidades autónomas tienen ya su propia normativa. Partiendo del análisis de la experiencia norteamericana se realiza un análisis comparativo de la normativa autonómica. Además se exponen diversas situaciones clínicas, y se señala cómo aplicar estos documentos, y cómo incorporarlos a la toma de decisiones en la práctica asistencial. Finalmente se señalan los límites en la aplicación de estos documentos

Since 2002 a great deal of legislation on advance directives has been developed in Spain. All the autonomous communities have their own legislation. Based on an analysis of the North American experience, we performed a review of the legislation in the autonomous communities. Several clinical situations are presented and the application of these documents is illustrated, as well as how to apply them in decision-making in clinical practice. Finally, the limits of advance directives are discussed

Temperamento e hipertensión arterial. Divertimento / Temperament and arterial hypertension. Divertissement

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