Papers by Alexandre Mauron
One of the many important ethical issues raised by health care systems is how best to sustain equ... more One of the many important ethical issues raised by health care systems is how best to sustain equity. As conflicting individual interests are inevitable within a health care system, issues of fairness are bound to arise. Changes in the structure of a health care system are thus key events that can affect equity in important ways. Using the “Benchmarks of Fairness” approach, we assessed the possible effects of introducing selective contracting of physicians on the equity of the Swiss health care system.
Background: Clinical ethics committees and consultation services are a new development in Switzer... more Background: Clinical ethics committees and consultation services are a new development in Switzerland. These services grew out of locally perceived needs, with locally determined structures and processes. They were first listed in a 2002 survey, and the first national meeting of clinical ethics committees took place in 2004. Attempts at establishing bridges and networks between these services are very recent, and are made more difficult by the multi-cultural and multi-lingual structure of Switzerland.
The American journal of bioethics : AJOB, 2011
Switzerland has an unusual position on assisted suicide: it is legally condoned and can be perfor... more Switzerland has an unusual position on assisted suicide: it is legally condoned and can be performed by non-physicians. Euthanasia is illegal, but there is a debate about decriminalisation that also discusses participation by non-physicians
Abstract The ethical underpinnings of palliative care and those of voluntary euthanasia and assis... more Abstract The ethical underpinnings of palliative care and those of voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide (VE/AS) are often viewed as opposites. In this article, we review the values held in common by the euthanasia legalization movement and palliative care providers. Outlining this common ground serves to define, with greater clarity, the issues on which differences do exist, and ways in which some open questions, which are as yet unresolved, could be approached.
Les Cahiers du Centre Georges Canguilhem, 2011
The Patient's Wish to Die, 2015
In Switzerland, the context of wishing to die in end-of-life situations is inextricably linked to... more In Switzerland, the context of wishing to die in end-of-life situations is inextricably linked to the legality of assisted suicide and of organisations that provide it. This liberal stance has deep historical roots and strongly shapes public attitudes on the right to die. It also differs in several respects from the situation in other liberal countries as regards euthanasia and/or assisted suicide. For one, there is little positive regulatory guidance on assisted suicide, neither for organisations nor for individual physicians. This open and widely acknowledged practice of assisted suicide is an obvious challenge for palliative care, whose philosophy is antagonistic towards active aid in dying. While in other liberal countries, palliative care is faced with definite rules for euthanasia and/or assisted suicide, the Swiss situation is much less clear. There are relatively few specific data on attitudes of the palliative care community and of patients facing choices at the end of life.
Revue médicale suisse, Jan 7, 2014
Revue médicale suisse, Jan 16, 2013
Revue médicale suisse, Jan 5, 2013
Revue médicale suisse, Jan 6, 2010
Comptes Rendus Biologies, 2015
The &... more The "spectre of eugenics" is often raised about various current reproductive practices that imply a form of choice between future possible persons. Some of these practices are linked to genetic technologies such as pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, others merely entail the choice of a procreator having specific traits, such as in artificial insemination with donor. The weight and limits of this reproof of eugenics are examined, with special attention to the conceptual problems resulting from confusing choices involving virtual persons with the selection of existing persons.
Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics, 2007
There is increasing support for embryonic stem (ES) cell research on both sides of the Atlantic. ... more There is increasing support for embryonic stem (ES) cell research on both sides of the Atlantic. In the United States, the outcome is more funding from non-federal sources, despite the current administration's opposing views. In Europe, a similar pragmatic turn is in the making, but the future is still uncertain. Acceptance of ES cells is mitigated by the uncritical belief that their use is ethically more suspect than is the case for adult cells.
Schweizerische medizinische Wochenschrift, Jan 20, 1999
The label of molecular medicine stands for a variety of scientific, diagnostic and therapeutic de... more The label of molecular medicine stands for a variety of scientific, diagnostic and therapeutic developments. While these aspects of modern medicine have relatively little in common in terms of the ethical tissues they raise, they change the overall philosophy of medicine in characteristic ways. These changes are analysed in terms of three somewhat non-traditional dimensions of medical practice: the engineering's deal, the predictive dimension, and the role of the doctor as personal health advisor.
Revue médicale suisse, Jan 16, 2012
Bulletin de l'Académie nationale de médecine
The controversy surrounding PGD has not abated in recent times. This is especially the case for P... more The controversy surrounding PGD has not abated in recent times. This is especially the case for PGD-based tissue typing, which is used to select a future child who could serve as a stem cell donor for an older sick sibling. We examine three types of ethical argument cited against PGD in general, and specifically against tissue-typing PGD. These arguments focus on the moral status of the early embryo, the eugenics issue, and the charge that the future child is being exploited. We conclude that none of these three arguments is unassailable, and that it is the reproductive freedom of couples considering PGD that should prevail.
Revue médicale suisse, Jan 14, 2011
Revue médicale suisse, 2011
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Papers by Alexandre Mauron