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The Imperative Character of Medical Technology and the Meaning of “Anticipated Decision Regret”

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 March 2009

Tjeerd Tymstra
Tjeerd Tymstra
Affiliation:
Groningen, The Netherlands
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Extract

Medical-technical possibilities are often experienced as being strongly compelling. This imperative character of medical technology not only applies to the medical profession, but also to patients who frequently find it very difficult to refuse medical examinations or treatments. This article discusses the technological imperative with regard to patients. It attempts to discover relationships with decision theory, particularly concerning “anticipated decision regret:” The fact that prevention of regret plays an important role in the use of medical technology is illustrated through a number of examples: liver transplantation, prenatal diagnosis, screening, and in vitro fertilization.

Type
General Essay
Information
International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , April 1989 , pp. 207 - 213
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1989

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