Although the topic of decision making capacity and older persons has been discussed in the literature, there still is much to be learned about it theoretically and practically. Experts continue to disagree about which standards are important for assessing decision making capacity. Questions such as: ìWhen should a capacity assessment be done on an older person and by whom?î are covered by the editors. Topics included in this volume are the application of an original framework for ethical decision making in long term care; an elder's capacity to decide to remain living alone in the community; the quest for helpful standardized instruments for evaluating decision making capacity; and end-of-life liability issues.

The Model Rules of Professional Conduct provides an up-to-date resource for information on legal ethics. Federal, state and local courts in all jurisdictions look to the Rules for guidance in solving lawyer malpractice cases, disciplinary actions, disqualification issues, sanctions questions and much more. In this volume, black-letter Rules of Professional Conduct are followed by numbered Comments that explain each Rule's purpose and provide suggestions for its practical application. The Rules will help you identify proper conduct in a variety of given situations, review those instances where discretionary action is possible, and define the nature of the relationship between you and your clients, colleagues and the courts.

With the increasing growth of the elderly population, geriatric care is becoming eminently important not only to medical professionals but also to all those involved in caring for the elderly including social workers, nursing home staff, and relatives. This timely work confronts in a clear and systematic manner the many ethical issues concerning care for elderly persons. For instance, what is sound ethical decision-making in relation to life-sustaining medical treatment for elderly patients? At a time when aging of the population is increasing the demand for health care, is age-rationing a justified means of cost control? How can investigators satisfy ethical requirements in relation to medical or social-scientific research with elderly subjects, and what special precautions are needed when elderly persons are ill, demented, dependent on social services, and/or institutionalized? What are the responsibilities of adult children toward frail elderly parents? How can professionals and relatives determine whether paternalism toward an elderly person is ethically justified? In an accessible way, this book explains the ethical and conceptual issues at stake. Several key examples are presented and each chapter ends with an extensive case study and analysis. Ethics and the Elderly will be a valuable resource for all those involved in geriatric care and to many in the field of bioethics.

This volume explores the concept of safety as applied in the long term care context. Chapters examine the way in which the quest for safety may work either synergistically or adversely upon other worthy social goals. Among the initiatives considered are promoting the decision-making autonomy of patients/clients and their surrogates, enhancing the quality of care and quality of life available to long term care residents, and providing fair compensation for injured victims when serious harm occurs. Questions addressed that are of concern to legal and ethical theorists, social science researchers, and patient/client advocates include: To what extent do litigation and/or regulation accomplish the safety and other legitimate objectives of public policy in the long term care arena? Do the costs of various approaches outweigh the benefits in promoting safety and other goals? How do litigation and regulation compare with alternative approaches to achieving the same goals, in terms of an acceptable cost/benefit balance?

PRESERVING A LIFE OF PEACE AND DIGNITY FOR THE AGING This ground-breaking volume offers a new, collaborative approach geared to enhance case review, improve victim safety, raise abuser accountability, and promote system change. Sharing the common goal of promoting elder victim safety, experts in adult protective services, law enforcement, prosecution, health care, advocacy, and civil justice have formed a unique, multidisciplinary team approach to tackle the following critical topics: Establishing a collaborative description of elder abuse history Identifying the criteria for the reporting of cases Accessing the intervention systems involved Highlighting benefits and obstacles to success Reviewing policy, legislation, research, and social change As the aging population continues to grow, so does the potential for increasing cases of elder abuse. Replete with case examples that allow the experiences of victims to speak for themselves, this book provides the framework to begin, and to build on, collaborative approaches at the local, state, and national levels toward ending elder abuse.

Should organ transplants be given to patients who have waited the longest, or need it most urgently, or those whose survival prospects are the best? The rationing of health care is universal and inevitable, taking place in poor and affluent countries, in publicly funded and private health care systems. Someone must budget for as well as dispense health care whilst aging populations severely stretch the availability of resources. The Ethics of Health Care Rationing is a clear and much-needed introduction to this increasingly important topic, considering and assessing the major ethical problems and dilemmas about the allocation, scarcity and rationing of health care. Beginning with a helpful overview of why rationing is an ethical problem, the authors examine the following key topics: What is the value of health? How can it be measured? What does it mean that a treatment is "good value for money"? What sort of distributive principles - utilitarian, egalitarian or prioritarian - should we rely on when thinking about health care rationing? Does rationing health care unfairly discriminate against the elderly and people with disabilities? Should patients be held responsible for their health? Why does the debate on responsibility for health lead to issues about socioeconomic status and social inequality? Throughout the book, examples from the US, UK and other countries are used to illustrate the ethical issues at stake. Additional features such as chapter summaries, annotated further reading and discussion questions make this an ideal starting point for students new to the subject, not only in philosophy but also in closely related fields such as politics, health economics, public health, medicine, nursing and social work.

Since the late 1970s when Congressman Claude Pepper held widely publicized hearings on the mistreatment of the elderly, policy makers and practitioners have sought ways to protect older Americans from physical, psychological, and financial abuse. Yet, during the last 20 years fewer than 50 articles have addressed the shameful problem that abusersâ€"and sometimes the abused themselvesâ€"want to conceal. Elder Mistreatment in an Aging America takes a giant step toward broadening our understanding of the mistreatment of the elderly and recommends specific research and funding strategies that can be used to deepen it. The book includes a discussion of the conceptual, methodological, and logistical issues needed to create a solid research base as well as the ethical concerns that must be considered when working with older subjects. It also looks at problems in determination of a report's reliability and the role of physicians, EMTs, and others who are among the first to recognize situations of mistreatment. Elder Mistreatment in an Aging America will be of interest to anyone concerned about the elderly and ways to intervene when abuse is suspected, including family members, caregivers, and advocates for the elderly. It will also be of interest to researchers, research sponsors, and policy makers who need to know how to advance our knowledge of this problem.