What are some examples of ethical issues within hospice care?
The HAO outlines a number of examples of ethical issues that can arise in hospice care. These include Advanced Care Planning, Confidentiality, Withholding and Withdrawing Treatments, Resuscitation Orders, Food and Water, Pain Control, Substitute Decision Making, Informed Consent, and one of the most controversial ethical issues in hospice care Disclosure. Disclosure is an issue that involves telling or not telling the client the truth about their diagnosis and/or progress. In many different cultures, the terminal client’s family is told of their diagnosis and/or progress while most often the client is not. According to the Visiting Volunteer Training Manual, it is up to the client whether or not they want to know of their own diagnosis and/or progress.
