Getting ethics into practice: Ethics entails much common sense

doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7464.513-b

BMJ 2004;329:513 (28 August), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7464.513-b

Letter

Getting ethics into practice

Ethics entails much common sense

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—I agree with many of the points raised by Parkerin his editorial.¹ However, how far does one go? The positionof "core" subjects in medical curriculums is increasingly tenuous,with the push to incorporate more and more peripheral (but neverthelessimportant) subjects. I am not aware of any evidence that formaltraining in medical ethics makes people any more ethical.

Furthermore, despite having an interest in medical ethics, beingan expert member of a regional ethics committee, having hadformal medicolegal training, and even having read Aristotle'sEthics from cover to cover, I find ethical issues and decisionsjust as difficult as always. In most situations where ethicalconsiderations arise "on the shop floor," common sense and asense of ease or unease (morality?) will guide most people inthe right direction. Common sense is difficult to teach, andperhaps formal ethics training, despite playing a valuable . . . [Full text of this article]