医療ミスや臓器移植、堕胎、守秘義務、安楽死など、医療に係わる法律は私たちの生命にかかわる重要な問題を憲法で規定しています。医療法に詳しいチャールズ・フォスターが、ケーススタディーを用いながら、その原則や問題点、そして課題をわかりやすく解説します。(cf. Medical Ethics, #114)
  

• An engaging and accessible account of the main principles of medical law
• Examines a wide range of areas from abortion to the availability of IVF, and the withdrawal of medical treatment
• Uses case studies from international jurisdictions to fully understand the main principles
• Assumes no previous knowledge of the subject

 
Medical law is concerned with our bodies, and what happens to them during and after our lives. When things go wrong with our bodies, we want to know what our rights are, and what governs the conduct of the clinicians into whose hands we put our lives and limbs. Dealing with matters of life and death, it can therefore have a fundamental impact on medical practice. 

Headlines in the media often involve the core issues of medical law - organ transplantation, abortion, withdrawal of treatment, euthanasia, confidentiality, research on humans - these are topics that affect us all. Headlines can misrepresent, however. In order to fully understand the issues and their relevance, we have to delve into the cases and into the principles behind them. 

In this highly readable Very Short Introduction, Charles Foster explores different examples to illustrate the key problems and principles of medical law. 
  
  
Reading Guide