Ethics (e-books)

E-book

Marián Kireš - Renáta Orosová a kol.

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E-book

Ľubov Vladyková - Marián Bednár a kol.

The university textbook Ethics of Science and Technique (Selected Problems) is a collection of contributions by various authors who deal with selected problems and areas of science and technique. For the last hundred years, we can observe the rapid development of science and technique (technology). The transition of society in the 20th century into the information age and in the current 21st century into the digital age brings radical challenges and changes in all areas of human life, but especially in the moral field.

Ethical discussions, responding to the development of science and technique (technology), have stimulated the emergence of ethics of science and technique, which as a subdiscipline of applied ethics is a way out of the conflict between professional autonomy, social control and self-regulation of action and behaviour; not only in science and technique, but also in economy and politics. In the digital age, technique, technology and science are fundamentally changing our lives; from the way we work to the way we communicate, how we fight local and global problems, and how we try to solve societal problems.

These radical changes are not without controversy, and many provoke intense debates that are often polarized or associated with scientific ambiguities or dishonest demagoguery and ideology.

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Marián Bednár

The scientific monograph The Value of Human Life in the Connotations of Postmodernism presents a current issue of reflections on the value of human life. It sees in the broader connotations of postmodern society, where the approaches of applied ethics (bioethics), philosophy and Christian theology intersect. This issue is embedded in the historical, philosophical, sociological and cultural-social Postmodernism.

The monograph analyses the postmodern value system, the dominant postmodern anthropological concept, secular bioethics and civil law in relation to human life and its value. The key is the confrontation of the postmodern anti-life mentality and life in the most discussed bioethical issues: contraception, artificial insemination techniques, genetic manipulation, abortion, sterilization, (bio) technology, euthanasia. An alternative approach is offered by the theological vision of human and life presented in the Judeo-Christian context. In the light of modern theological disciplines, the personnel concept is enriched by theological anthropology culminating in an eschatological vision.

In this sense, the issue of the value of human life culminates, which is also inspired by one of the most important encyclicals of Pope John Paul II. Evangelium vitae (25th anniversary of its writing). It is she who calls for the acceptance and respect of every human life and for the practical development of a new culture of life.

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E-book

Nikita Bobrov et al.

History of ethics represents a search for basic principle, which would enable a distinction between moral and immoral, good and bad, right and wrong. The main problem lies in motives, methods and consequences of human conduct. The integrity of medical profession puts emphasis on life-long study and practice according to the professional competence, and last but not least on ethical principles and rules of medical ethics.
Medical ethics, as a part of bioethics, is currently taking on a huge importance in everyday clinical practice and must face many serious ethical issues regarding the whole system of health care. On general level the decision-making in medical practice is quite easy, based on the requirement to always act in the patient's best interest. However, it is often difficult to know exactly what is best for the patient, in a certain situation, for this particular patient. Also with each progress in medicine and its globalization, the more aspects of human lives are being affected.

Biomedical research, and the new treatment and diagnostic methods it provides are viewed differently in each country, therefore various cultural, religious, social and legal aspects must be considered in their assessment, as well as the basic principles of medical ethics. Worldwide effort on unifying ethical regulations on certain aspects of health care led to the establishment of many legally recognized documents the doctors must be familiar with.

Teaching ethics to students of medical school aims to educate the future doctors towards ethical decision-making, behaviour and professional conduct according to the basic principles of medical ethics.
This textbook provides the basic information on medical ethics for students of medical faculties and serves as a practical introduction to the most common ethical problems of health care provision for their future professional practise.

Authors

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Andrea Klimková

The current development of applied ethics globally suggests that applied ethics is entering a new, qualitatively distinct era of innovative application approaches, methodologies, and methods, as well as novel educational formats. The application levels in applied ethics (in bioethics, business ethics, technology ethics, professional ethics, etc.) are tied to critical reflection on previous strategies and methodologies in their teaching.

Combining ethical rationality with practical variability and implementing ethical policies and tools in concrete practice truly demands new competencies, new skills, and the ability to work in novel ways with empirical and normative frameworks. This requires working with ethical theory and moral practice inventively, heuristically, innovatively, and propedeutically.

The creation of useful and professionally constructed procedures and formats is part of the professional and academic preparation of applied ethicists at modern departments of applied ethics.

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E-book

Iveta Cimbolákováa kol.

The premise “today’s research shapes the healthcare of tomorrow” expresses the importance of medical research and the reason for its pursuit. Scientific research and advances in biomedical sciences, as well as their application in medical practice and in the process of delivering healthcare, nevertheless bring new problems in the area of ethics.

Biomedical research itself requires the precise definition of hypotheses, which are tested both under laboratory conditions and on experimental animals. Although clinical studies on human subjects are expected to benefit individual participants and to advance fundamental biomedical knowledge, they also entail certain risks depending on the nature of the research. These risks must be minimized, and the experiment should be conducted freely while also taking place within specific measures to protect all involved-not only the test subjects, but also the researchers themselves.

The presented publication provides an overview of the general conditions and ethical principles of research involving laboratory animals and human subjects, the issue of professional and ethical assessment of projects, as well as fraud and the publication of results. At present, we are witnessing tremendous progress in molecular biological sciences, which brings ethical dilemmas also in the field of genetics. For this reason, one of the chapters is devoted to the latest findings in this area.

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E-book

Nikita Bobrova kol.

The concept of medical ethics is interpreted as both applied and professional ethics. As a bioethical discipline, it consists of three normative parts: biogenesis, biotherapy, and thanatology. From an ethical perspective, medicine is part of clinical bioethics; however, at the current stage, “evidence-based ethics” is still lacking.

In the context of standardizing health care, there is an excessive development of certain components of bioethics (such as ethical codes and the concept of patient autonomy), but also a reduction, especially of its clinical component (such as communication, thanatology, euthanasia, dysthanasia, and futile treatment). Current legislative efforts are leading to a reduction in the rights of health care workers, particularly in terms of corporate autonomy.

The fundamental task of medical ethics is the cultivation of medical professionalism, which is defined as the professional alignment of expert, ethical, and legal reasoning, and as a starting point for thinking in terms of values, with reflection on the bioethical space in clinical and professional practice.

Since society declares health as its priority, this priority should positively influence the entire health care system, and its basic idea should be a health care system based on a humanistic ethical paradigm with social and professional application.

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E-kniha

Silvia Farkašová Iannaccone a kol.

The history of ethics represents the search for a fundamental principle that would enable a person to distinguish between moral and immoral, good and evil, or right and wrong. The main issues are the motives, methods, and consequences of human actions.

The integrity of the medical profession emphasizes lifelong study and practice according to professional competence, and, last but not least, adherence to ethical principles and standards of medical ethics. Medical ethics and the related communication in the process of providing healthcare are becoming increasingly relevant topics. Communication between doctor and patient itself constitutes a very important part of the diagnostic process and treatment; it significantly contributes to the creation of a mutual relationship and, to a considerable extent, ensures patient cooperation.

The development of various information and network technologies allows for rapid communication even in medicine; however, a kind word and real contact with the patient, with an appropriate choice of verbal and nonverbal communication tools in personal contact, cannot be replaced by modern technology. The present era places demands on certain communication skills of the physician. Another ethical and legal issue is informed consent, which brings the patient’s active participation in the process of providing healthcare.

The presented publication provides basic information about medical ethics, communication in medicine in general, and communication skills in medical practice. Further chapters are devoted to the issue of informed consent, ethics, and the specifics of communication with selected groups of patients. We believe that this publication will clarify for the reader the basic ethical pillars and will be helpful for basic orientation in the issues of medical communication.

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E-book

Tatiana Kimáková a kol.

Ethics, as the science of the proper realization of human potential in various areas of life, also extends into the environment. For understanding the ethical aspects in this field, a thorough knowledge of the individual components of the environment, as well as their impact not only on humans but on all living nature, is very important. Therefore, questions concerning the influence of the environment are increasingly at the forefront of interest from an ethical perspective, also in connection with existing legal norms.

The modern process of civilization is characterized by rapid development of science and technology. However, this development, while raising the standard of living on one hand, also brings negative side effects on the other. The result is the disruption of ecological, biological, and natural life conditions, especially in the areas of industrial centers. The development of individual branches of industry leads to the production of liquid, gaseous, and solid wastes, the emergence of harmful risk factors threatening various components of living nature, including humans. There may be increased bioaccumulation of hazardous chemical elements in organisms, which, through their effects, represent a potential risk also in terms of carcinogenesis and mutagenesis.

For this reason, an important role of society is to create conditions to prevent the release of emissions and to reduce their concentration to the lowest possible, socially and biologically acceptable level. The assessment of the biological effects of harmful substances is based on experimental and epidemiological studies. Knowledge of concentration and duration of exposure is crucial for applying dose-effect relationships and for determining the highest permissible concentrations of pollutants. The health of the population, as a universal value and a primary human right, represents a fundamental economic resource not only for the individual, but also for society as a whole.

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Adriana Jesenková

The ethics of care offers inspiring ways to think about the relationships and connections we are part of. It provides a new and unconventional reading and understanding of human relationships, thereby enabling us to respond in new and appropriate ways to certain empirical challenges (Pettersen 2011, p. 51).

Just twenty-five years ago, thinking about care was associated with women’s decisions in the private sphere concerning their personal dilemmas and problems. Over the last two decades, advocates of the ethics of care have demonstrated that the ideal of care has the potential to regulate not only private behavior but also human interactions in general.

Today, ideas about care have the power to change how we evaluate personal relationships, professional conduct, public policy, international relations, and global issues. The relevance of the ethics of care in such a wide range of areas of life, many of which are characterized by mutual incompatibilities and conflicting interests, is conditioned by several factors. However, one of the most significant is the creativity and fruitfulness of the thinking of the representatives of the ethics of care, who develop ethical concepts, models, and methods capable of grasping and analyzing human relationships in all their diversity (Pettersen 2011, p. 52).

Compared to traditional ethical concepts and theories in moral philosophy, the ethics of care introduces radically different sets of models and normative concepts. Today, it is precisely feminist ethics of care that offers a critical reflection on care within the realm of moral philosophy, ethics, and social philosophy. The aim of this publication is to identify the concept, subject, approach, philosophical foundations and starting points, as well as the possibilities for applying the ethics of care as a specific moral approach and, at the same time, as a specific moral theory in the field of social science and humanities research.

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Ľubov Vladyková

The university textbook presents a panorama of ecological-ethical concepts - ecological ethics, as a possibility of cultural development and indicates the continuing search for relationships with the aim to recognize the importance of ethics and its influence on our understanding and our relationship with the natural world, including scenarios adequately reflecting human-nature interaction in all their complexity.

Special attention is paid to the question of internal evaluation of nature, human and non-human life, both at individual and holistic levels (biocentrism) and the value of physical elements of ecosystems (ecocentrism).

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