The
influence of Law on Medical Practice
(Portuguese
PDF version)
Coordinator:
Ricardo C. R. Moreira
Moacir
Assein Arus*
*MD.
Vice-President of Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. Associate
professor, Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, School
of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS),
Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
J
Vasc Br 2004;3(2):176
"A
influência do Direito no exercício da Medicina"
("The influence of Law on Medical practice"), by professor
Jorge R. Ribas Timi and collaborators, deserves to be on the shelf
of every doctor and medical student.
Professor Timi and the other authors approach, in a simple, direct
and concise way, the ethical, penal and civil responsibilities of
doctors. They also address topics regarding rights of patient, informed
consent, medical secrecy, medical investigation, autonomy of terminal
patients and other specific subjects, providing a light and attractive
reading. The authors managed to involve the reader in a way that
one cannot wait to finish a chapter to start the next one and soon
go back to the previous chapter to review a concept.
The authors provide the reader with up-to-date information, practical
examples, and even real cases that have already been on court.
Sometimes, reading citations from the Code of Medical Ethics or
the Penal, Civil and Consumer Code may be rather boring for doctors,
who are not used to the juridical discourse. In this book, these
citations are conveniently integrated within the text so that they
will be easily assimilated.
Through the popular question-and-answer format, the authors were
sensible enough to address some aspects that frequently make doctors
anxious and insecure:
- How to behave if I am required to give evidence as witness
in a case involving a patient?
- What to do in face of procedures that are not covered by
the Health System?
- Is the electronic medical record safe?
Polemic and including issues, such as blood transfusion in Jehovah's
Witness patient and euthanasia are also addressed.
This book focuses on the need of doctors to be aware of legal aspects
regarding the exercise of medicine and emphasizes the importance
of a good relationship between patient and doctor in order to avoid
legal suit, having the Code of Medical Ethics as "the cornerstone
for the correct practice of Medicine"
Undoubtedly, the authors managed to achieve their goal: to contribute
to the understanding of important issues which reside in the interface
of Medicine and Law.
It is everyday reading!
As vascular surgeon and professor of Forensic Medicine and Medical
Deontology, I would like to thank professor Timi and his collaborators
for this work. I am sure it will be very useful!
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