About chapter 9
Learning objectives
Doctors working in prisons should be able to identify the areas in which they might be asked to become involved, and the ethical dilemmas relating to treatment decisions. Capital punishment is not a uniform system, and the dilemmas will therefore differ depending upon the legislature.
After going through this section, you should be able to:
identify areas in which doctors might be asked to act where there is no ethical conflict between their duties to their patient and duties to their employer, and those in which a conflict exists.
be aware of the areas on which there is agreement amongst most doctors and where real disagreements continue.
identify where you are acting as doctors in the patients interest.
identify where you are acting as agents of the court or the state.
be able to identify the reasons why you should have no involvement in most areas of capital punishment.
identify the areas where public policy can force abuses of medical ethics.
Contents introduction
Assessing mental competence to stand trial
Sentencing phase and questions of future dangerousness
Treatment of those on death row - quality of care, facilities etc.
Fitness for execution
Treatment or not
Training 'paramedical' staff
Prescribing drugs
Certifying death - give more gas/volts/drugs
Confirming death
Counselling the bereaved
Counselling the prison staff
Campaigning against the death penalty
Author
Vivienne Nathanson MD, Director of Professional Activities at the British Medical Association, Professor School of Health, University of Durham.
Estimated time: 50 minutes
Last modified: Thursday, 29 January 2015, 3:39 PM