HIV and AIDS Testing, Screening, and Confidentiality

by Bennett, Rebecca; Erin, Charles A.

• ISBN13: 9780199243143
• ISBN10: 019924314X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-05-17
• Publisher: Clarendon Press

Summary

The series:General Editors: John Harris, University of Manchester; Soren Holm, University of Manchester.Consulting Editor: Ranaan Gillon, Director, Imperial College Health Service, London.North American Consulting Editor: Bonnie Steinbock, Professor of Philosophy, SUNY, Albany.The late twentieth century has witnessed dramatic technological developments in biomedical science and the delivery of health care, and these developments have brought with them important social changes. All too often ethical analysis has lagged behind these changes. The purpose of this series isto provide lively, up-to-date, and authoritative studies for the increasingly large and diverse readership concerned with issues in biomedical ethics--not just health care trainees and professionals, but also social scientists, philosophers, lawyers, social workers, and legislators. The series willfeature both single-author and multi-author books, short and accessible enough to be widely read, each of them focused on an issue of outstanding current importance and interest. Philosophers, doctors, and lawyers from several countries already feature among the contributors to the series. Itpromises to become the leading channel for the best original work in this burgeoning field. This book:Testing and screening for HIV and AIDS give rise to ethical, legal, and social issues of the most controversial and delicate kind. An international team of eighteen doctors, philosophers, and lawyers present a fresh and thorough discussion of these issues; they aim to show the way to practicaladvances but also to give an accessible guide to the debates for readers new to them. The contributors pay particular attention to the sensitive nature of the information yielded by a test for HIV antibody. They consider such questions as these: Are we under an obligation to disclose our HIV statusif known? Can there be a moral justification for the breaching of confidentiality in certain circumstances? Should health care professionals be forced to undergo HIV testing? Is there a right to remain in ignorance of one's HIV status? Consideration of such questions illuminates not only publicpolicy and medical practice in connection with HIV and AIDS, but also broader issues about professional ethics and individual rights in other medical and social contexts. The breadth and depth of the research represented and the lucidity of the arguments put forward make this a key resource foracademic researchers and healthcare professionals alike.

Table of Contents

Notes on Contributors	xi
Introduction	1	(20)
Rebecca Bennett
Charles A. Erin
HIV Testing and Screening: Current Practicalities and Future Possibilities	21	(18)
Gerald Corbitt
Counselling and HIV Testing: Ethical Dilemmas	39	(22)
Lorraine Sherr
HIV Screening: Benefits and Harms for the Individual and the Community	61	(14)
Catherine Manuel
HIV Testing, Screening, and Confidentiality: An American Perspective	75	(16)
Edward P. Richards, III
Compensation and Consent: A Brief Comparative Examination of Liability for HIV-Infected Blood	91	(16)
Dieter Giesen
Individual Responsibility for Health	107	(18)
Inez de Beaufort
Is Society Responsible for My Health?	125	(15)
Soren Holm
HIV/AIDS and the Point and Scope of Medical Confidentiality	140	(9)
Anton Vedder
Can Health Care Workers Care for Their Patients and Be Advocates of Third-Party Interests?	149	(17)
Medard T. Hilhorst
HIV Infection and the Health Care Worker: The Case for Limited Disclosure	166	(13)
Calliope C. S. Farsides
Fiduciary Relationship: An Ethical Approach and a Legal Concept?	179	(21)
Margaret Brazier
Mary Lobjoit
Ethical Aspects of the Use of 'Sensitive Information' in Health Care Research	200	(16)
Soren Holm
Peter Rossel
AIDS and Insurance	216	(12)
Tom Sorell
Heather Draper
Should We routinely Test Pregnant Women for HIV?	228	(12)
Rebecca Bennett
Who Should Know about My HIV Positivity and Why?	240	(11)
Heta Hayry
Is There a Right to Remain in Ignorance of HIV Status?	251	(16)
Charles A. Erin
Annexe: 'AIDS: Ethics, Justice, and European Policy': Summary of Conclusions and Recommendations	267	(4)
Bibliography	271	(10)
Index	281