Interview Preparation Day

Should I give my own opinion?

Yes, you can inject your own opinion into a ques3on. The examiners need to know what you think. You will,
however, need to back your opinion up with evidence / reasons.
The best structure we would suggest is to work through the arguments for and against from a neutral
posi3on before men3oning your own opinion in the conclusion. This allows the examiner to see that you
understand the ques3on and have weighed up the op3ons, thus have evidence to form your own opinion.

4 principles of ethical decision making

PL

When posed with a very dicult ethical dilemma there are 4 cornerstones, that if answered one by one,
should point you to the correct answer. It can be helpful to think and quote these when unsure of how to
construct an answer to a dicult ethical ques3on.

Value
Autonomy

Deni7on

A pa3ents right to make up their own decision. It respects a individuals ability to

make informed decisions. It, of course, presumes that a person is able to make a
decision (ie is conscious and has capacity).

Benecence

AM

i.e. Doctor, I do not want you to operate on me, even though I might die as a
consequence.
Your ac3ons, as a medical prac33oner, promo3ng the well being of others. Ac3ng
for the pa3ents best interest.
i.e. These an<bio<cs will treat your infec<on and make you feel beAer.
First, do no harm! It can be considered bePer to not harm your pa3ent, then to
do them good. Lots of medical treatments have side eects which can make
treatment a balance of pros and cons.

EX

Non- Malecence

i.e. Im sorry but we do not want to operate on your hip fracture because we
believe your heart will not cope with the strain of the anesthesia and you may not
survive the opera<on.

Jus3ce

The posi3ves and nega3ves of treatments must be equally shared across society.
This involves fair distribu3on of NHS resources, and trea3ng those that need it
most.
i.e the NHS will only fund 3 rounds of IVF before a couple has to pay for it
privately.

Although not part of the big 4 it is also worth no3ng what the law states about the main medical ethics. It
can be very useful and impressive to quote the legal stance of the UK when answering a dicult ethical
ques3on.

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Interview Preparation Day

Try now to apply each of these 4 principles to the following ques3on:
Q. A lady is diagnosed with breast cancer. She is aware that a new drug exists and wants to be treated with
it. It costs 30,000 per year and she would need to stay on it for the rest of her life. Pa<ents have a 75%
chance of survival when started on this drug. It is also a 30% chance of side eects, and a 1% chance of
death due to these side eects. Would you treat her?

Value

PL

Autonomy

Jus3ce

EX

Non- Malecence

AM

Benecence

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Interview Preparation Day

Common Ethical Discussion Topics

Euthanasia
Q. A pa<ent with a chronic condi<on wants to end their life because they are in pain all day every day. Can
you explain what you would do in this situa<on.
Deni7ons

Euthanasia - deliberately ending someones life.

Passive euthanasia - withholding life sustaining treatment, with the purpose of ending someones life.
Physician assisted suicide - Providing the means for a pa3ent to end their on life.

PL

Legal

All forms of euthanasia are considered murder, thus are illegal in the UK. This is regardless of the pa3ents
medical problems or the reasons that a doctor might preform the act.

For

AM

Arguments to consider

Against

Autonomy - it is the pa3ents own wish to die.

Non Malecence - you are harming the pa3ent by

killing them.

Benecence - ac3ng in the pa3ents best

interests (death).

Benecence - ac3ng in the pa3ents best interests

(life).

Easing pa3ent suering (they may have long

term pain).

Law - Illegal in UK.

EX

Reduce nancial burden on the NHS. (looking

a_er unwell, dying pa3ents is expensive).

What do you think about euthanasia?

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