By Carl E. Schneider. 307 pp. New York, Oxford University Press, 1998. $39.95. ISBN 0-19-511397-7.
The process of making medical decisions in the United Statestoday is, in theory, a neat and well-defined affair. Authorityand responsibility are shared, as mentally and emotionally capableadults choose voluntarily and intelligently from among variousoptions whose relative risks and benefits their personal physicianshave fully explained to them. Gone are the days of medical paternalism,when arrogant health care professionals misused their powerto force particular treatments on dependent patients who blindlytrusted them. In place of that trust — and good riddance— bioethicists and health care lawyers have, over thepast three decades, substituted the . . . [Full Text of this Article]
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