Practical ethics for general practice

Abstract

There are several features of general practice which, taken together, make general practice unique. General practitioners provide primary care which is comprehensive in nature; they are committed to seeing patients presenting with any kind of query, symptom or problem. The care they provideis ongoing, providing the opportunity to gather a large amount of information about their patients, and to develop personal relationships over time. These features affect the nature of ethical issues presenting in general practice in a number of ways, and raise ethical dilemmas not present insecondary and tertiary medical care. This book provides an accessible account of ethics in general practice, addressing concerns identified by practitioners. It is based on examples from general practice, and uses a contents list developed through discussions with GPs, trainers and GP registrars. Readers will gain practical insights into how to identify and analyze the ethical issues they encounter in everyday general practice.