Medical Futility

A Cross-National Study

Medical futility is a controversial issue not only in its definition but also in its application. There are few books on the subject, and those in existence mostly focus on the situation in the United States. This title, however, provides extensive international perspectives on medical futility.

This book will benefit healthcare professionals as well as health policy makers around the world. It allows them to see how different countries approach the issue of medical futility and their experiences in dealing with this issue. The complexity of the issue, and in particular how some countries innovatively address it in an ethically sound manner, is clearly presented.

Contents:

• So-Called Futile Care: The Experience of the United States (Robert M Veatch)
• The Reality of Medical Futility (Dysthanasia) in Brazil (Leo Pessini and William Saad Hossne)
• Medical Futility and End-of-Life Issues in Belgium (Jan L Bernheim, Thierry Vansweevelt and Lieven Annemans)
• The Concept of Medical Futility in Venezuela (Gabriel d'Empaire)
• Medical Futility in the Russian Federation (Olga I Kubar, Galina L Mikirtichian and Marina I Petrova)
• Medical Futility in Australia (Dominique Martin)
• Medical Futility in Japan (Yasuhiro Kadooka and Atsushi Asai)
• Medical Futility in China: Ethical Issues and Policy (Yongxing Shi, Mingjie Zhao, Yang Yang, Cunfang Mao, Hui Zhu and Qingli Hu)
• Medical Futility in Korea (Ivo Kwon)
• Medical Futility from the Swiss Perspective (Tanja Krones and Settimio Monteverde)
• Medical Futility in Turkey (Berna Arda and Ahmet Aciduman)
• Medical Futility in the United Arab Emirates (Said Abuhasna and Ali Abdulkareem Al Obaidli)
• Medical Futility in Iran (Alireza Bagheri)

Readership: Healthcare professionals, health policy makers, physicians and nurses, lawyers academics, researchers, graduate students and lay public.
Key Features:

• Each chapter discusses medical futility in a particular country, including the US, China, Australia, Switzerland, Brazil, Korea, Japan, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela, Russia, Italy, and Turkey
• Presents experiences and challenges relating to medical futility in several countries with different cultural and economic backgrounds
• Provides information about the topic and elaborates on healthcare systems, payment and insurance systems as well as end-of-life issues in contributing countries