Kant and Levinas in Bettering the Patient-Physician Interaction

Document Type

Oral Presentation

Campus where you would like to present

Ellensburg

Event Website

https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source

Start Date

16-5-2019

End Date

16-5-2019

Abstract

The current patient-physician relationship follows the informative model, where physicians act as a source of knowledge and advice patients on how to make their own healthcare decisions. Under this model, physicians are seen as skillful technicians capable of fixing the human body. This is an unrealistic view of the physician role, and it leads to unrealistic expectations of physicians as well as problems with communication and participation in the patient-physician relationship. I propose a redefinition of the role of a physician to focus more on both patients and physicians as moral beings using Kantian and Levinasian ethics. From the lens of Levinasian ethics, there is a recognition by the physician of the patient as a vulnerable moral being that makes a claim of responsibility on the physician. After the recognition of the immediate ethical relationship between the patient and physician, the interaction can be filtered through the lens of Kantian ethics. At this point there are more practical considerations involving treatment, larger public health concerns, and the recognition of the physician as a being who also deserves moral consideration. The result of a redefinition of the physician role would be improved communication between patients and physicians and more active participation from the two parties.

Faculty Mentor(s)

Cynthia Coe

Department/Program

Philosophy and Religious Studies

SeniorPresentationPhil-SCP.pptx (199 kB)
Slides for SOURCE 2019 presentation Plascencia

Additional Files

SeniorPresentationPhil-SCP.pptx (199 kB)
Slides for SOURCE 2019 presentation Plascencia

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May 16th, 12:00 AM May 16th, 12:00 AM

Kant and Levinas in Bettering the Patient-Physician Interaction

Ellensburg

The current patient-physician relationship follows the informative model, where physicians act as a source of knowledge and advice patients on how to make their own healthcare decisions. Under this model, physicians are seen as skillful technicians capable of fixing the human body. This is an unrealistic view of the physician role, and it leads to unrealistic expectations of physicians as well as problems with communication and participation in the patient-physician relationship. I propose a redefinition of the role of a physician to focus more on both patients and physicians as moral beings using Kantian and Levinasian ethics. From the lens of Levinasian ethics, there is a recognition by the physician of the patient as a vulnerable moral being that makes a claim of responsibility on the physician. After the recognition of the immediate ethical relationship between the patient and physician, the interaction can be filtered through the lens of Kantian ethics. At this point there are more practical considerations involving treatment, larger public health concerns, and the recognition of the physician as a being who also deserves moral consideration. The result of a redefinition of the physician role would be improved communication between patients and physicians and more active participation from the two parties.

https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/source/2019/Oralpres/186