No Child Is An Island: Ethical Considerations In End-of-life Care For Children And Their Families

Title

No Child Is An Island: Ethical Considerations In End-of-life Care For Children And Their Families

Creator

Rapoport A; Morrison W

Identifier

DOI: 10.1097/SPC.0000000000000226

Publisher

Current Opinion In Supportive And Palliative Care

Date

2016

Description

PURPOSE OF REVIEW:
Ethical challenges are commonly encountered when caring for children with life-threatening conditions.
RECENT FINDINGS:
Controversial end-of-life issues, such as physician-assisted death and medical futility, may also arise in children. The approach to these issues in children may be guided by the 'adult' medical literature; the age of the patient should not be a relevant factor in determining the morality of these acts. As such, the focus of this review is on ethical issues unique to children and adolescents by nature of their dependence on their parents. Appreciation that child well-being is best promoted when care aligns with parental beliefs, values and culture has given rise to the practice of family-centred care, which we prefer to call 'family-partnered' care. Occasionally, a family-partnered approach may challenge fundamental paediatric ethical principles, including best interests, developing autonomy, and the importance of honesty and truth-telling.
SUMMARY:
This article explores the challenges that may arise when there is disagreement between the child, the parents, and the healthcare providers about care at the end-of-life and provides suggestions to clinicians about how to help resolve these conflicts.

Rights

Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).

Citation List Month

June 2016 List

Citation

Rapoport A; Morrison W, “No Child Is An Island: Ethical Considerations In End-of-life Care For Children And Their Families,” Pediatric Palliative Care Library, accessed March 28, 2024, https://pedpalascnetlibrary.omeka.net/items/show/10539.