Abstract
The principle of patient autonomy is a cornerstone of bioethics. According to this concept, patients should be given the power to make decisions related to their treatment. It is an important component of modern medical ethics, which has received much interest in current literature. However, the rate of participation of patients and their willingness to participate are variable according to the cultural, social and family environments in which they are inserted. The aim of this paper is to promote a brief descriptive review on autonomy, the preferences of patients and the use of informed consent as an instrument for the exercise of autonomy in literature, and to stress the lack of debate, as well as the pressing need for discussion of these current issues nationwide.
Highlights
Morality is the concept of what is or is not socially acceptable
Medical ethics deals with the study of morality applied to medical practice
The proposed codes of professional ethical terms can vary between countries, but generally they rely on the principles of respect for autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence and justice
Summary
Morality is the concept of what is or is not socially acceptable. Morality comes from the social conventions about what is considered right or wrong, from an implicit consensus among members of a particular community. The principle of autonomy is perhaps the most discussed in the ethics literature, especially the literature on the doctor-patient relationship and on obtaining informed consent[2]. The exercise of patient autonomy is possible only if the physician complies with a duty to inform with clarity and with the duty to assist in the decision making process.
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