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John W Glaser

Publications and source records attributed to John W Glaser.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1993

A paradigm shift for ethics committees and case consultation: a modest proposal.

In conclusion, the expert-consultation model of ethics consultation is deeply imbedded in modern health care. The paradigm of consultant as expert rather than as community-enabler shapes the expectations and behaviors of healthcare personnel and institutions. This paradigm has also shaped the early stages of HEC development and ethics case consultation. It is time to shift paradigms and adopt one that derives more from the nature of ethics than from the nature of scientific medicine: the role of HECs should be to enable key professionals to carry out the ethical dimensions of patient care. When the HEC does review cases, it should be with the purpose of improving the institution, not of resolving individual cases. One consequence of this is that there will be more individual case reviews than before, but the function, emphasis, agents and locations will shift substantially. A second consequence is that the HEC will function more as an agent of social change by helping to harness the institution's resources. We judge both of these to be a welcome evolution in healthcare ethics.

Ethical Review↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The community of concern. An ethical discernment process should include and empower all people relevant to the decision.

1. Always begin by asking explicitly and methodically: Who else would make this a more adequate community of concern? 2. Remember that the need for the community of concern flows from two considerations: the unavoidable presence of constricted consciousness and the nature of moral choice as beneficence--difficult choices concerning human dignity. 3. Pay special attention to the community of concern at the beginning and at key points throughout the process. 4. Define the primary community of concern so that relevant issues include: The decision's impact on the public, and on values, functions, and relationships expertise needed Buy-in and implementation Existing commitments Individuals at the margin who are consistently forgotten 5. Define the secondary community of concern so that relevant issues include: Determining who beyond this primary group will enrich the process With input In implementation In mitigating the harm that results In what ways and how frequently should these individuals/groups be involved?

Catholicism↗