Institute:Office of National Coordinator (ONC) Workforce Training Curriculum
Component:The Culture of Health Care
Unit:Ethics and Professionalism
Lecture:Contemporary topics in medical ethics
Slide content:Conscientious Objection A health care professionals moral or religious objection to a certain medical intervention Health care professionals have refused to provide medical interventions, for example: Abortions Sterilization procedures, such as vasectomy Pain medications for terminally ill patients Emergency contraception 19
Slide notes:The term conscientious objection refers to a situation in which a health care professional has a moral or religious objection to providing a particular medical intervention. There have been numerous situations in which medical professionals have refused to provide medical interventions on the basis of their beliefs. In fact, recently some medical students have been refusing to even learn about certain procedures. The flip side of a health care professionals right to refuse to provide certain interventions is the right of patients to determine the course of their own health care. For example, if a woman who needs emergency contraception has access to only one pharmacy, and the pharmacist refuses to provide emergency contraception, then patient autonomy is lost. 19