Geriatric Mental Health Ethics: A Casebook

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From the Afterword by Frank A. Cervo, MD,

Long Island State Veterans Home,

Stony Brook University School of Medicine

Detailed case studies will guide practitioners through Bush's "Four A's" of ethical decision-making:

• Anticipating and preparing for ethical issues commonly encountered in specific contexts
• Avoiding ethical misconduct
• Addressing ethical challenges with specific strategies and goals
• Aspiring to even higher standards of ethical decision making and practice

Making informed, ethical decisions and choosing the right course of action with elderly patients can prove difficult for mental health practitioners. This is especially true when patients suffer from Alzheimer's disease or other disorders that impair their own decision-making abilities. When confronting dilemmas concerning privacy, informed consent, and patient autonomy, use of an ethical decision-making model is essential.

In this book, Bush not only presents this practical, 10-step model, but through a diverse collection of case studies, also demonstrates how it can be implemented across numerous therapeutic settings. Nursing, social work, counseling, and psychiatry are only four of the many settings discussed. In essence, the author offers a truly unique, interdisciplinary approach to ethical decision-making in geriatric mental health care."