ArticleBMC medical ethics2015
New frontiers in the future of palliative care: real-world bioethical dilemmas and axiology of clinical practice.
Article in BMC medical ethics, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Attitudes of undergraduate medical students towards end-of-life decisions: a systematic review of influencing factors.BMC medical education · 2025Pooled it
- Real-world ethics in palliative care: A systematic review of the ethical challenges reported by specialist palliative care practitioners in their clinical practice.Palliative medicine · 2021Pooled it
- Appealing to Tacit Knowledge and Axiology to Enhance Medical Practice in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Hermeneutic Bioethical Analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2021Pooled it
- Decision-Making at End-of-Life for Children With Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Bioethical Analysis.Frontiers in oncology · 2021Pooled it
- Ethical considerations of AI integration in palliative care: a qualitative study.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- Healthcare professionals' perceptions of ethical issues in palliative sedation: A moral case deliberation study in eight European countries.Palliative care and social practice · 2026Article
- Article
- Prevalence of ethical dilemmas in advanced cancer patients (secondary analysis of the PALCOM study).Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2021Article
- "Teach for ethics in palliative care": a mixed-method evaluation of a medical ethics training programme.BMC palliative care · 2020Article
- Character Strengths Profiles in Medical Professionals and Their Impact on Well-Being.Frontiers in psychology · 2020Article
- Article
- The value of bioethical research: A qualitative literature analysis of researchers' statements.PloS one · 2019Article
- Engaging the Public to Identify Opportunities to Improve Critical Care: A Qualitative Analysis of an Open Community Forum.PloS one · 2015Article
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3 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundIn our time there is growing interest in developing a systematic approach to oncologic patients and end-of-life care. An important goal within this domain is to identify the values and ethical norms that guide physicians' decisions and their recourse to technological aids to preserve life. Though crucial, this objective is not easy to achieve. The purpose of this study is to evaluate empirically the real-life bioethical dilemmas with which palliative physicians are confronted when treating terminal cancer patients.
methodsA quasi-experimental, observational, comparative, prospective and mixed (qualitative and quantitative) study was conducted in order to analyse the correlation between the palliative doctor-patient relationship and ethical judgments regarding everyday bioethical dilemmas that arise in palliative clinical practice. The values at stake in decision-making on a daily basis were also explored. From February 2012 to march 2014, palliative healthcare personnel were invited to participate in a research project on axiology of clinical practice in palliative medicine. Each participant answered to a set of survey instruments focusing on ethical dilemmas, views, and representations of clinical practice. For this analysis we selected a convenience sample of 30 physicians specialized in pain medicine and palliative care (algologists and palliativists), with two or more years of experience with oncologic patients and end-of-life care.
results113 dilemmas were obtained, the most frequent of which were those regarding sedation, home administration of opioids, and institutional regulations. We observed that the ethical nucleus of palliative medicine is truth-telling, implying bidirectional trust between patients and healthcare providers. The two most prominent virtues among the participants in our study were justice and professional humility. The outstanding roles of the physician in palliative medicine are as educator and as adviser, followed by that of provider of medical assistance.
conclusionsThis investigation opens up new horizons in a career path where professional wearing is rampant. The rediscovery of values and virtues in palliative clinical practice will renew and replenish the motivation of healthcare providers who carry out these duties, giving them a new professional and personal perspective of growth.
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