Time to get streetwise: why medical ethics is in need of doctors

doi:10.1136/bmj.39055.658762.59

BMJ 2006;333:1226 (9 December), doi:10.1136/bmj.39055.658762.59

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Time to get streetwise: why medical ethics is in need of doctors

Daniel Sokol

¹ Keele University

daniel.sokol@talk21.com

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

On my office wall hangs "The Conjurer," a paintingby the 15th century Dutch artist Hieronymus Bosch. On the rightside of the canvas, a conjurer holds a small ball between hisfingertips. On the other side of the table a gowned spectator,bent over like a hunchback, stares idiotically at the smallball. Behind the spectator, hidden from the stares of the divertedcrowd, the conjurer's accomplice is stealing the spectator'spurse.

Like the spectator in Bosch's painting, themodern medical ethicist is at risk of losing something of considerablevalue. By focusing so closely on the little ball—the purelyphilosophical aspects of medicine (such as the meanings of autonomy)—theethicist too easily ignores the broader context in which theseissues arise. The combination of abstruse theorising and ignoranceof practical medicine alienates the very people the ethicistis trying to help.

To be of any use to practitioners, . . . [Full text of this article]

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This article has been cited by other articles:

Sokol, D. K (2008). "But you're not a doctor!". BMJ 337: a3077-a3077 [Full text]

Rapid Responses:

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Time to get streetwise: scratching the surface of a far deeper matter: Michael V Holmes
bmj.com, 8 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Historically inaccurate: S�ren Holm
bmj.com, 9 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Time to get streetwise: Raj K Mohindra
bmj.com, 9 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Author's response: Daniel K Sokol
bmj.com, 9 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Conjuring tricks: Anthony P Roberts
bmj.com, 9 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Re: Author's response - moving the goal posts: S�ren Holm
bmj.com, 12 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Sokol's corrective?: Tom Koch
bmj.com, 14 Dec 2006 [Full text]
The Fault is on both sides: Michael G Peckitt
bmj.com, 18 Dec 2006 [Full text]
When (and what) do we learn?: Samia A Hurst
bmj.com, 19 Dec 2006 [Full text]
A view from the pavement (or sidewalk): John Spicer
bmj.com, 19 Dec 2006 [Full text]
Desirability & Practicality: Sebastian L Pillon
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Time to get the streetwise: R K Mohindra
bmj.com, 15 Feb 2007 [Full text]
Time to get streetwise: why medical ethicists and doctors are in need of "common sense".: Josephine H Hartley
bmj.com, 24 Jul 2007 [Full text]