Publication
Title
Ethical dilemmas in contemporary psychiatry: findings from a survey of national psychiatric associations in Europe
Author
Abstract
BackgroundThe European Psychiatric Association (EPA) is an organization that speaks on behalf of its individual members and members of National Psychiatric Associations (NPAs). The aim of this study to identify and investigate current contents of ethical codes and practices in the countries belonging to EPA.MethodsThe study is an expert survey sent out to 44 representatives of 30 NPAs covering the following topics: the existence of national bodies dealing with ethical issues in psychiatry, the availability of documents relevant to ethical issues, the types of ethical issues addressed at the national level, and the current and envisaged ethical debates.ResultsOut of 44 experts invited to participate in the study, 31 NPAs from 30 countries responded (response rate 70.45%). In the majority of countries, the general mission statement serves as the main document covering ethical issues in psychiatry. Most frequently, internal documents were reported to address medical malpractice, workplace bullying, plagiarism, academic fraud, sexual abuse, and discrimination/racism. Furthermore, internal documents cover the ethical assessment of potentially controversial procedures, including psychosurgery, euthanasia, and pregnancy termination. The most important topics for debate at the level of NPAs/EPA were associated with violations of clinical practice standards and human rights.ConclusionsNPAs are active in the field of professional ethics, defining ethical standards related to interactions among professionals and services provided by mental health care professionals. Future collaboration of NPAs, under the umbrella of the EPA, could allow to develop a database of local ethical documents that would be translated into English and accessible to all EPA members.
Language
English
Source (journal)
European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists. - Paris, 1991, currens
Publication
Paris : Elsevier , 2023
ISSN
0924-9338 [print]
1778-3585 [online]
DOI
10.1192/J.EURPSY.2023.2470
Volume/pages
66 :1 (2023) , p. 1-8
Article Reference
e94
ISI
001112935200001
Pubmed ID
37909413
Medium
E-only publicatie
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 06.11.2023
Last edited 01.07.2024
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