Product Description

This book continues to provide an overview of the inter-relationship between ethical medical practice and the law. Thus, the emphasis is on those aspects of medical practice that are governed, to a large extent, by the moral law. However, medical law, as a whole, is still a developing discipline which is being increasingly shaped by the courts and there is extensive coverage of seminal and recent judicial decisions, with particular attention being given to those which define the limits of professional freedom in the light of the increasing importance attached to personal autonomy. The book incorporates a strong element of comparative medical law, having a particular interest in the shift of influence from other Anglophone jurisdictions to those in Europe. The text is directed in the main to students and practitioners of law, but the overarching importance attached to ethical principles broadens its appeal to all those involved in the control and delivery of modern healthcare.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #180057 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-27
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 820 pages

Lynne Foxcroft, The Law Teacher 2006

"An excellent title which contains an excellent coverage of the topics with erudite commentary."

Review
An excellent title which contains an excellent coverage of the topics with erudite commentary. (Lynne Foxcroft, The Law Teacher 2006 )

Well-written, accessible to students, containing good coverage of most of the topics in medical law courses...the research and analysis is very good. (Stephen W. Smith, Medical Law Review, Aug 2006 )

About the Author
Professor Mason is Professor (Emeritus) of Forensic Medicine in the University of Edinburgh. He has been an Honorary Fellow teaching and researching medical law and ethics in the Edinburgh Law School since 1985.

Customer Reviews

Clear, concise and comprehensive
This is an excellent text for those studying this area, covering all of the issues which are important in this area with a clarity and simplicity that is admirable, especially given some of the subject matter. The authors tackle controversial issues with sensitivity, but do not refrain from giving their own views about the law, views which are backed up with case law, legislation and their own extensive knowledge of relevant and contemporary academic debates. The book will leave the student with a thorough knowledge of what the law is and how it may be reformed.

This book provides a superb overview of the law in each of the chapters (detailed below), although those wanting particularly detailed knowledge of theory and case law in a particular area would be well advised to consult academic journals alongside reading this textbook. Nonetheless, this will be a good starting point for research where the subject matter is unfamiliar, and the authors are very good theorists in their own right.

Chapters in this volume are:
1. Medical Ethics and Medical Practice
2. Public Health and the State/Patient Relationship
3. Health Rights and Obligations in the European Union
4. The Management of Infertility and Childlessness
5. The Control of Fertility
6. Civil and Criminal Liability in Reproductive Medicine
7. Genetic Information and the Law
8. Medical Confidentiality
9. Liability for Medical Injury
10. Consent to Treatment
11. Health Resources and Dilemmas in Treatment
12. Treatment of the Aged
13. The Diagnosis of Death
14. The Donation of Organs and Transplantation
15. The Body as Property
16. Medical Futility
17. Euthanasia
18. Biomedical Human Research and Experimentation
19. Research on Children, Fetuses and Embryos
20. Mental Health and Human Rights.

The Standard Textbook in Medical Law
By far the most comprehensive of all textbooks on medical law, and an excellent book for those specialising in the subject. It is easily readable by both students and those more familiar with the subject. My first choice of reference book - highly recommended.