Broken Patient Autonomy In Health Care

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To many people, the word “autonomy” simply means the fundamental freedom of choice and independence. Many of us will not go beyond those words and understand how it can be applied in a medical setting. Patient autonomy is the right of a patient to make decisions about their individual medical care without the influence of their health care provider (“Patient Autonomy”). This concept is put in place because it gives an individual the freedom to choose their course of treatment, whether the healthcare professional’s own values conflict with it or not. Without autonomy, patients would be forced to go through procedures, surgeries, and other treatment protocols that do not fit their lifestyle, belief system, or personal situation at that very …show more content…
Hospitals, such as Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, have implemented programs that are centered on getting patients involved in their treatment arrangements. Patients are asked to participate in a study that evaluates their insight and objectives of consideration before they see their specialist. That way, the specialist recognizes what the patient needs and can fuse it into a treatment arrangement, and the patient is able to ensure his or her voice is heard. I believe every hospital could benefit from programs such as this, as it would improve the experience for both patient and physician in the long …show more content…
There is a case study that illustrates broken patient autonomy. A woman comes to the emergency room complaining of stomach pain. After undergoing a CT scan, she was told she has an abdominal aortic aneurysm and her chance of survival is 50/50. The physicians inform her that her time here on earth is very fragile. This woman is an erotic dancer; her main concern is that the surgery will leave a nasty scar that could potentially affect her work. This concern of hers makes her refuse the surgical treatment. The physicians try to push the surgery, but she does not back down from her choice. Knowing the patient’s decision, the physicians decide to perform the surgery anyway. They feel that she is not in the right state of mind to make the right decision, so they make it for her without her consent. She undergoes the surgery and survives. After recovering, the woman sues the hospital. She feels as if her choice was not taken into consideration and her freedom of choice was robbed from her. There are always a lot of questions that can come along with a case like this. Some examples of such questions are: Do you believe that the physician's actions can be justified in any way? Is there anything else that they could have done? Is it ever right to take away someone's autonomy? What would you do if you were one of the health care workers? These questions can definitely be justified, but only to a certain
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