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| Bioethical Principles of Medical Practice The Linacre Institute of the Catholic Medical Association |
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Bioethical Principles of Medical Practice (Set of 25) The Linacre Institute of the Catholic Medical Association $5.00  |
The Linacre Institute was estblished within the Catholic Medical
Association to develop position papers on various bioethical issues, based
on the moral and ethical principles contained herein.
- Since there is no incompatibility between science and religion, it is possible
to provide the highest standards of medical care without compromising Catholic
principles.
- life of every individual is created in the image and likeness of God and
is therefore sacred and inviolable from conception to natural death.
- All persons are entitled to a dignified death in God's own time, but directly
killing patients or assisting in their suicide is abhorrent regardless of
poor quality of life or survival expectancy.
- The duty to preserve life does not involve an obligation to prolong the
dying process by technological measures.
- A competent patient is entitled to decline extraordinary therapeutic measures
whose burdens exceed their benefits.
- The patient's autonomy does not supersede the conscience of the physician.
Therefore, the physician must be free to refuse to participate in immoral
procedures, and free to refuse to refer to other providers who might be willing
to perform such procedures.
- Abortion is an unspeakable crime and no Catholic physician should cooperate
formally or materially in its performance.
- The life of an individual is a great good which is a good "of" the
person and not just a good "for" the person. Life is not merely
instrumental to other goals - it is an intrinsic good.
- Food and drink are modalities of ordinary care and not a treatment of a
disease. Discontinuing nutrition and hydration for a patient who is not imminently
dying violates in its intention the distinction between 'causing death' and
'allowing death'.
- There should be no invidious discrimination in the delivery of medical
care based on social or economic factors. An operation that is indicated
for the intelligent child of wealthy parents is also indicated for the retarded
child of impoverished parents.
- The unitive and procreative ends of marriage may not be artificially separated.
Any measure whose directly intended purpose is to sterilize the patient temporarily
or permanently is morally unacceptable.
- The family as a natural institution is divinely inspired. The family is
the essential building block from which society is constructed.
- The economic and social policies of the state should be ordered to the
protection and strengthening of families.
- A family is a group related by birth, marriage or adoption. Any attempt
to elevate extramarital or homosexual cohabitation to the status of committed
heterosexual marriage is contrary to the best interests of the family and
society.
- It is appropriate for individuals and families to espouse a value system
and to promote that system both in private and in their community activities.
- The value of any individual life is not diminished by physical or mental
handicap, economic circumstances or state of dependency based on age.
- The economy of the United States should be ordered so as to provide equality
of opportunity regardless of race, religion or national origin. Although
individual differences may prevent equality of outcome, all individuals should
be free to pursue their maximum potential in a just society.
- The state exists for the individual and not the individual for the state.
Medical decisions should be made in the best interests of the individual
patient rather than the interest of relatives or the society at large.
- In an affluent society, rationing of limited medical resources or triage
among individual patients should be carried out in accordance with the principles
of distributive justice.
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