Ethical Consent for the Incompetent

Ethical Consent for the Incompetent

It is ethically difficult to research cures for diseases that render patients incompetent, because those patients, being incompetent, are incapable of giving consent to the research designed to study the disease and a possible cure. Should family members be permitted to give their proxy consent to such research, even if there will likely be no direct benefit to the patient? Close family members should be able to give consent for the demented if a few conditions are met.

First of all, there absolutely can be a benefit for the demented even if the research does not offer any immediate hope for their own improvement. Recently, there has been much debate over which side is more ethically correct. For research to be ethically correct it must contain a common good that is narrower than that of the whole society, yet gives an immediate benefit to the single individual. The good must also include the individual so it is seen as distributed to individuals. This type of research does provide that overall good to society, so it can be reprimanded.

Another good reason to justify this research is that there is a difference between therapeutic and non-therapeutic experiments. Therapeutic techniques involve all that will include research on the diagnostic and prevention of disease. If there is no direct benefit, many people believe it isn't justified anymore. The greater good should be seen and made relevant to the justification of the research.

Now when it comes to dementia, should your relatives be able to decide your own fate. I think everyone should make a living will explaining their wishes in certain situations like this, because it is too tough a decision to leave on your family. In certain situations the family's decision can be vindicated. The decision for the incompetent must be for the benefit of the patient's cause. The disease makes the patient part of an informal "community" that he can possibly benefit greatly. There is a vital importance for the understanding of certain disorders to help benefit many subjects in the future.

Research should be permitted if it is related to a direct "class" that the patient is involved. We can learn a great deal about future cases if people will allow experiments to be performed on them. It may be that the patient will not directly benefit from the results,