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Ann Thorac Surg 2000;69:326-329
© 2000 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons

Presidential Address

Ethics gap in surgery

Robert M. Sade, MDa, Timothy H. Williams, MDa, David J. Perlman, MAa, Cynthia L. Haney, JDb, Martha R. Stroud, MSa

a Department of Surgery and Institute of Human Values in Health Care, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA
b Division of Legislative Counsel, American Medical Association, Washington, DC, USA

Address reprint requests to Dr Sade, Institute of Human Values in Health Care, Medical University of South Carolina, 96 Jonathan Lucas St, Suite 409, Charleston, SC 29425
e-mail: sader{at}musc.edu

Presented at the Postgraduate course of the Forty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Southern Thoracic Surgical Association, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Nov 4–6, 1999.

Abstract

Background. Discussion of ethical issues occurs much less often in the surgical than in the medical literature. The reasons for this "ethics gap" are unknown.

Methods. Our clinical faculty ranked the ethical and legal acceptability of four treatment options in two cases of surrogate decision making. Only one option in each case was ethically and legally unacceptable (treating despite objection by the surrogate decision maker).

Results. Surprisingly often, faculty mistakenly believed the ethically unacceptable option to be acceptable, and the legally unacceptable option to be acceptable. Surgeons were not ethically different from other physicians. Surgeons (19 of 31, 62%), however, were significantly (p < 0.05) more likely than internists (18 of 51, 35%) or pediatricians (4 of 18, 22%) to believe, mistakenly, that operating on the baby without parental consent was legally acceptable.

Conclusions. This pilot study did not identify why the surgical literature contains a relative dearth of ethics discussion. Broader investigations are needed, because it is important that we understand the reasons for the gap. Surgeons’ strong ethic of personal responsibility for patients’ welfare should be transmitted to young trainees, a goal best achieved by discussing and writing about ethics. Moreover, our legal data suggest that a gap may also exist between surgeons and other physicians in understanding health law.




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Ann. Thorac. Surg., November 1, 2000; 70(5): 1758 - 1758.
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