An Ethical Analysis of the Barriers to Effective Pain Management

An Ethical Analysis of the Barriers to Effective Pain Management (Introduction and link to full text pdf) - Ben A. Rich; Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, 9: 54-70, 2000.

See also:
The Collapse of Medical Ethics and Standards for Pain Management
Frank Fisher, M.D., Drug Cops / Docs conf., Cato, 2005
and,
AMA’s Code of Ethics - Doctors have Obligation to Relieve Pain and Suffering
L.J. Morse, M.D.; NFTP website; 2003

Excerpt:
“No discussion of the goals and core values of medicine… has ever failed to emphasize the relief of pain… Consequently, the widespread failure of physicians to make effective pain management… a priority in patient care denotes an alarming departure of the profession from its deepest ethical roots, and… calls into question whether a majority of its practitioners continue to acknowledge that healthcare is a moral enterprise.”

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