Emergency medicine and ethics

Abstract

Ethical responsibilities in the process of decision making is an ancient and known responsibility of physicians as a whole. The overwhelming dynamics of emergency medicine constitute a special set of circumstances which make these responsibilities harder to cope with. Recognition of ethical phenomena, definition, usage, instruction and teaching of ethical codes are vital components or musts of professionalism in the emergency medicine armamentarium, both during the residency and also in the clinical practice. Informed consent, is the manifestation of the efficiency of the communication pursued between the patient and the caregiver, degree of the contribution fo the patient to the care and legal and professional mandates as undertaken by the physician.