Physicians are often asked to field medical questions outside the office. Sometimes they're even asked to give more than just a professional opinion: requests can include prescription refills and even surgeries. The American Medical Association warns physicians against providing this kind of informal care, with the exception of emergency situations, according to a recent essay in The New England Journal of Medicine.
In the essay, a committee of physicians from the University of Michigan questions what exactly constitutes an emergency and where physicians draw the line on informal care. In an informal poll, 1,703 respondents weighed in on the following scenarios developed by the University of Michigan committee:
1. A young neighbor in otherwise seemingly good health has asthma and ran out of her inhaler just two hours before a soccer game. Is it ethical to write her a prescription for an inhaler?
The majority of respondents, 62 percent, said yes, it is ethical to write the prescription. The other 37 percent of respondents thought it would be unethical.
2. A dermatologist friend who is struggling with a divorce asks for a depression medication prescription. Is it ethical to give him a three-month prescription and recommend he see a therapist?
Most respondents, 88 percent, said it is not ethical to write the prescription in this case. Only 11 percent thought it would be an ethical decision.
3. A physician's father-in-law got into a car accident and is in the intensive care unit at the hospital where the physician works. He finds his father-in-law to be in a lot of pain, but the physician in charge is not responding to their pager. Is it ethical for the physician to increase his father-in-law's morphine dosage?
The poll found 79 percent of respondents thought this would be unethical behavior. However, 20 percent of respondents felt it would be ethical to increase the dosage.
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