SITUATION

17 y/o girl who found out that she is pregnant and
asked her doctor not to tell her parents. What should
the doctor do? Tell her parents or not? The patient
also asked her doctor to refer her to another doctor
who knows how to perform abortion…
ISSUES at HAND
Patient Confidentiality
Professional Secrecy
Natural Secrecy
Promised Secrecy
Committed Secrecy
Informed Consent
Delegated Prerogative
Principle of Cooperation
Patient Confidentiality
Dr. has an obligation to keep confidential
any and all information regarding his
patients.

Case Question
How should the Dr. balance this case
according to the following issues?
Professional Secrecy
By virtue of his position, doctor is obliged to
keep secret certain information regarding
patients

Case Question
Is he obliged to not tell the parents simply
because the patient is under his care?
Natural Secrecy
Dr is obliged to keep info private because of
the nature of the info

Case Question
Will revealing the patient’s pregnant status to
the parents damage her ego or pride?
Promised Secrecy
Dr. is obliged to keep private info that he has
involuntarily come to know

Case Question
Is the Dr. obliged to not tell the parents
simply because he was told the information?
Committed Secrecy
The patient is guaranteed the info will be
kept private by the Dr. before agreeing to
discuss the information

Case Question
Should the Dr. keep private the info
knowing the patient only told him in the
first place because she assumed he
wouldn’t reveal the info?
Informed Consent
The Dr. must reveal all pertinent information
regarding his decisions towards the patient

Case Question
Does the Dr. have the right to tell the parents
since she is still a minor?
Delegated Prerogative
The Dr. can refer the patient, or the
patient can choose another Dr. to care for
them

Case Question
Should the Dr. refer her to another Dr.
regarding the abortion?
Principles of Cooperation
The principles of cooperation were developed
in the Catholic moral tradition as a way of
helping individuals discern how to properly
avoid, limit, or distance themselves from evil
(especially intrinsic evil.

1. formal (always immoral)

2. immediate (immoral)

3. mediate material (may be moral)
Principles of Cooperation
Immediate material cooperation occurs when the
cooperator participates in circumstances that are
essential to the commission of an act, such that the act
could not occur without this participation.
Immediate material cooperation in intrinsically evil
actions is morally illicit.

Case Question
Should her doctor refer her to another
doctor to perform the abortion?