MEDICAL ETHICS

Nature of Medical Ethics and Abuse of Medical Authority

Nature of Medical Ethics and Abuse of Medical Authority

Introduction

The novel “One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest” depicts the atrocities and abuse of medical authority by the head nurse. The head nurse, Mildred Ratched, is a former army nurse who is responsible for running a mental asylum. Ratched's methods to maintain control over the facility are highly controversial and show how medical procedures such as electroconclusive therapy and lobotomy, if performed without proper guidance, can impact a patient and at times prove to be fatal. Ratched is infamous at the facility as the “Big Nurse” by the patients in the asylum. The story involves Randle McMurphy, Billy Bibbit, Chief Brodem, Dale Harding and Nurse Ratched as the main characters. Ratched use of the above mentioned forms of medical procedure raise questions and legal and ethical uses in the society. These procedures were in practice, and the novel seeks to gain attention to the ethical and legal issues surrounding them. This novel was also adapted in a movie with the same title. The emphasis was on to disseminate information on the legality of these procedures. In this paper we shall discuss the ethical considerations and legality of electroconclusive therapy and lobotomy.

Electroconclusive Therapy

The procedure of electroconclusive therapy or ECT is a mode of treatment in which patients of acute depression have to receive electric shocks to induce lesion on the brain of the individual. Electroconclusive therapy is legal only if the patient shows no signs of recovery through medication or drug therapy. This form of therapy is also applicable when there is an urgent need to impart treatment to the patient. The practice of this procedure is heavily criticized around the globe. In the novel, Nurse Ratched's character subjected patients to electroconclusive therapy to subdue patients that got out of control.

Psychiatrists consider electroconclusive therapy controversial ever since it first came into practice more than 60 years ago. Critics argue over multiple points of this form of treatment. The consensus lies over the fact that electroconclusive therapy is the most effective manner through which acute depression is controllable in patients. This form of therapy is also applicable if a patient experiences fits of obsession or displays suicidal intent. The argument lies on the point that should that treatment be imparted as a long-term procedure? Some critics argue that the use of electroconclusive therapy should be relative to patients and should not be a general method of treatment. Since every patient encounters varying levels of depression episodes or suicidal tendencies, the use of ECT should depend on the severity of the condition the patient is experiencing. It is also essential to contemplate the relation between the costs and benefits of the therapy before impart treatment (Weiner, 2003).

The abuse of such form of therapy, in the manner Nurse Ratched used, can be fatal or could lead to serious implications. It also raises ethical issues as to whether or not electroconclusive therapy should be ...