Professional Etiquette: Where Did It Come From, Where Is It and Where Is It Going? – MM1508
Etiquette is an old-fashioned word and implies old-fashioned values. Etiquette is defined as a code of behaviour that delineates expectations for social behaviour according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group. The word is derived from the French meaning of a “tag or a label”.
Modern Medicine – August 2015
Off-label and Off-licence Drug Use – MM1506
Off-licence use of drugs relates to the use of drugs that are unregistered by the MCC for use in humans. Off-label use of drugs is, on the other hand, extremely common especially in paediatric practice. Off-label use means that the medicine is used in another way or for an indication other than those specified in the conditions of registration of the medicine and as reflected on its labelling.
Modern Medicine – June 2015
Inviolate Patient Confidentiality? – MM1504
The startling details surrounding the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525 in the French Alps on March 24 have led me to re-consider aspects of patient confidentiality.
Modern Medicine – April 2015
Some Considerations Regarding Research Ethics – MM1502
The 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenhau death camp had me reflecting on the atrocious complicity of some of our medical brethren at this time and the unethical research that they conducted. A consequence of their behaviour was the adoption of the Nuremberg code in 1946 which is usually considered the forerunner of our modern research ethical doctrine.
Modern Medicine – February 2015
It could be fairly stated that we live in an age of Human Rights or at least and more correctly, an age when much lip-service is paid to Rights, including Human Rights. The recent “umbrella revolution” in Hong Kong is driven by the demand for universal suffrage and the right to be governed by a democratically elected government.
Modern Medicine – October 2014
Is It Time for Compulsory Vaccination? – MM1408
Vaccination is undoubtedly the most successful health intervention of all time. Vaccines work extremely well, save millions of lives and prevent human suffering globally. They are also cost effective; giving excellent bang-for-your buck!
Modern Medicine – August 2014
Death Certificates 101Â – MM1406
One of our readers recently requested clarification on the filling in of death certificates. In this case his query was about two elderly patients who died, unexpectedly, but apparently from natural causes. The doctor was unable to honestly attest to the causes of death but he had no reason to suspect that the deaths were anything but natural. How was he to proceed?
Modern Medicine – June 2014
Litigation Threats to the Clinician – MM1404
Without a doubt, doctors practising clinical medicine in SA are under increasing threat from patients and their lawyers. This adds a new and often unwelcome dimension to the interface where good medicine is practised.
Modern Medicine – April 2014
Impaired Healthcare Practitioners – MM1402
The definitions and perceptions of what constitutes impairment are much easier in the abstract or related to some anonymous individual. It gets quite messy when it is close to home.
Modern Medicine – February 2014
Oh Well, That’s Life…. – MM1310
Bioethics is about the rightness and wrongness of how we, as health care professionals, treat our fellow-beings, especially those who entrust
their medical care to us. As a paediatrician who has been involved with newborns for most of my career, it is essential to decide when my patient
has attained the status of a fellow-being. Most discussions of “when does life begin” are hugely philosophical but there are important practical and pragmatic reasons that need to be addressed. Hence, the subject needs to be aired and our
views challenged at all levels.
Modern Medicine – October 2013
