Biomaterial Database

[Wish-fulfilling medicine in Dutch practice. Have physicians become salesmen?]. 2014

Eva C A Asscher, and Maartje H N Schermer

Wish-fulfilling medicine - the use of medical technology for the prima facie non-medical wish of the patient - occurs in practice, both in and outside the Netherlands. In a recent study both GPs and plastic surgeons recalled occasions when they had fulfilled patient's non-medical wish, sometimes against their own better judgement. The question is whether this is turning physicians into salesmen? The central values of medical professional ethics, namely autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, and justice still appear to play a central role. Neither physicians nor lay persons view physicians as salesmen. However, it appears that the balance between the importance attached to a well-considered wish of a patient and the associated risks and harms is shifting. Thus, a physician may well perform wish-fulfilling requests and still remain a good physician. However, there is certainly room for refusal.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D009426	Netherlands	Country located in EUROPE. It is bordered by the NORTH SEA, BELGIUM, and GERMANY. Constituent areas are Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten, formerly included in the NETHERLANDS ANTILLES.	Holland,Kingdom of the Netherlands
D010361	Patients	Individuals participating in the health care system for the purpose of receiving therapeutic, diagnostic, or preventive procedures.	Clients,Client,Patient
D010817	Physician-Patient Relations	The interactions between physician and patient.	Doctor-Patient Relations,Doctor Patient Relations,Physician Patient Relations,Physician Patient Relationship,Doctor Patient Relation,Doctor-Patient Relation,Physician Patient Relation,Physician Patient Relationships,Physician-Patient Relation,Relation, Doctor Patient,Relation, Doctor-Patient,Relation, Physician Patient,Relation, Physician-Patient,Relations, Doctor Patient,Relations, Doctor-Patient,Relations, Physician Patient,Relations, Physician-Patient,Relationship, Physician Patient,Relationships, Physician Patient
D010820	Physicians	Individuals licensed to practice medicine.	Physician
D003132	Commerce	The interchange of goods or commodities, especially on a large scale, between different countries or between populations within the same country. It includes trade (the buying, selling, or exchanging of commodities, whether wholesale or retail) and business (the purchase and sale of goods to make a profit). (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed, p411, p2005 & p283)	Business,Commercial Sector,Prices,Sales,Vendors,Businesses,Commerces,Commercial Sectors,Price,Sale,Sector, Commercial,Sectors, Commercial,Vendor
D004992	Ethics, Medical	The principles of professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of the physician, relations with patients and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the physician in patient care and interpersonal relations with patient families.	Medical Ethics
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D026686	Beneficence	The state or quality of being kind, charitable, or beneficial. (from American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed). The ethical principle of BENEFICENCE requires producing net benefit over harm. (Bioethics Thesaurus)	Benevolence,Nonmaleficence