Surgical Ethics: Principles and Practice

This book encompasses the theoretical and practical aspects of surgical ethics, with a focus on the application of ethical standards to everyday surgical practice and the resolution of ethical conflicts in the surgical arena. It provides surgeons (both prospective and practicing) in the different surgical fields with deep, practical insights into the topic.
A 21st century surgeon requires complete competence (superb clinical skills, expert surgical decision-making and outstanding performance and technical skills) as well as solid ethical values. Ethics are placed at the core of surgical professionalism, so surgeons must be not only proficient and expert but also ethically and morally reliable. Surgical decision-making can be considered as a two-step process: the "how to treat" aspect is a matter of surgical science, while "why to treat" issues are a matter of surgical ethics and are based on ethical principles. As such, every surgeon should have a moral compass to guide his or her actions, always placing the welfare and rights of the patients above their own. The book provides invaluable background and insights for solving the ethical conflicts surgeons around the globe encounter in their daily practice.
Each chapter will also include features such as key point summaries in the beginning of the chapters, explanatory boxes, a glossary and suggested readings.
Surgical Ethics - Principles and Practice is an authoritative work in the field designed for experienced surgeons, surgical residents, and fellows, all of whom are confronted with ethics issues and conflicts in practice.

Alberto R Ferreres, MD, PhD, JD, MPH, FACS (Hon.) received his medical degree "summa cum laude" from the University of Buenos Aires School of Medicine, where he also completed his residence in General Surgery and a fellowship in Surgical Oncology. He was appointed International Guest Scholar of the American College of Surgeons in 1991 and he completed a fellowship in Clinical Ethics at the University of Chicago. He is currently professor of surgery at the University of Buenos Aires and department chair at the Dr. Carlos A Bocalandro Hospital. Further, Prof. Ferreres holds honorary fellowship from the American Surgical Association and the American College of Surgeons, the Chinese College of Surgeons, the Brazilian College of Surgeons and the Brazilian College of Digestive Surgery, the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland as well as from the North Pacific Surgical Association. He sits at the American College of Surgeons Committee on Ethics and serves on the editorial board of the Annals of Surgery, JAMA Surgery, JOGS and the American Journal of Surgery. He also holds a professorship at the University of Washington, where he runs the Surgical Ethics Program. Prof. Ferreres is a gastrointestinal surgeon specializing in gastrointestinal and minimal invasive surgery and with an interest in surgical ethics, global surgery and professional liability issues and has been invited as a visiting professor around the globe.