Ethics for Specific Professions
There are many different medical professions that have a responsibility for ethical matters. Over the years man different sectors or specialists in health and medicine have developed, ranging from General Practitioners through to consultants who specialise in specific surgeries such as cancer specialists or cosmetic and plastic surgeons.
Each specific specialism has its own set of issues it faces and anybody who works in the medical professional has a responsibility to know what the major issues in their sector are.
For example any doctor who operates in the surgical field has a responsibility to make sure all patients understand the risk associated with surgery as well as any other treatments that might be an alternative to surgery. Making sure the patient fully understands the risks and benefits of surgical intervention is a crucial part of the doctor patient relationship.
For example a cosmetic surgeon must make sure that before he inserts breast implants that the patients fully understands all the risks such as the anaesthetic as well as the longer term risks such as capsular contracture and rupture of the breast implant.
Each specific profession have its own set of guidelines in place on ethical conduct however most have the same core values and that is that each doctor or medical professional must always act in the patients best interests and make sure they are fully informed of any treatment they undergo.