Theories of Ethics
You will certainly have to answer an ethical question in your interview. Your interviewer will expect you to be familiar with the four pillars of medical ethics which guide the decisions made by healthcare professionals.
To elevate your response a step above other candidates, this page discusses additional theories of ethics. You will not be expected to know these but you could use them to really impress your interviewer.
Ethical Topics
Euthanasia is the act of deliberately ending someone’s life in order to relieve suffering. This page discusses the history, laws and ethics surrounding euthanasia.
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy so that it does not result in the birth of a baby. This page describes the history, laws, methods and ethics of abortion.
As the whole of the UK is now an Opt Out system, this page debates, through a cost-benefit analysis, if this is the best decision.
This page details the framework a doctor must consider when switching off life support. This ties into the Alfie Evans and Charlie Gard case studies and was a recurrent theme in our interviews.
This page provides a framework for determining if a patient has the capacity to consent. It explains what consent is, when it is necessary and the special case of Gillick competence.
Breeching confidentiality is a common interview question as there are only a few scenarios when it is acceptable. This page outlines these cases and evaluates the outcomes.
With the major 2023 nurse, ambulance and doctor strikes, this is a topic that will likely crop up in interviews. This page covers all the information you need to know about these and other strikes in the past.