Monday, February 22, 2016

Another Scan and a Review?

Off to do another CT Scan this morning. Just a routine annual checkup, no doubt, but I guess when we have our next consultation there will be talk about a small spot on my hippocampus. And, of course, our old friend, vertebra L5 which has a mass in it and probably growing again. 
Actually, I'd also like to know if my left knee prosthesis is mounted squarely on the bone as I quite often have a little pain in that area - could it be slipping, I wonder? I guess that's not an oncology problem...

Anyway, just as I am closing down my email for the rest of day in comes an interesting article from the World Medical Association. The WMA says that the ethical obligations of doctors may need to be redrafted to reflect social changes. “In recent decades, respect for patient self-determination has been established as one of the most important principles of medical ethics,” says the WMA. “However, it is not mentioned in the Declaration of Geneva.” 
This Declaration is the widely adopted form of the "Hippocratic Oath" adopted after World War II. It has not been changed since then - though certainly never universally adopted - many institutions produce their own versions for graduations. Looking at my randomly selected illustration, I note that Geneva hasn't got the commonly accepted principle "Do no harm" either!
I am really encouraged to hear of this possible review of an international standard that might become more widely adopted.

No comments:

Post a Comment