An A–Z of medical philosophy

How do we tell the difference between right and wrong? Perhaps most of the time it’s enough to follow the rules of our particular culture. But how do we justify our cultural rules, and how do we cope with new or difficult cases? Is there any ultimate guide to right and wrong, or are we merely arguing about preferences? There are four main traditions that inform our current Western consensus statements on medical ethics. These are the virtue ethics of ancient Greece, the Judaeo-Christian tradition, deontology, and utilitarianism. We can see the three main secular moral systems as giving guidance at the three different levels of an act. Virtue guides our choice in the goal or motive of an act. Deontology guides our choice regarding the nature of an act itself. Consequentialism guides our choice when we take into account the specific circumstances of an individual instance of an …