It is impossible to practice medicine without being influenced by one's own moral and ethical ideals.

Many of the important issues and dilemmas of "clinical" decision-making, and difficult challenges within the physician-patient relationship are at core, questions of values and ethical principles.

In The Doctor's Dilemma, you will have a chance to explore your own approach to medical ethics.

In the course of the program, you will take the role of Dr. Pat Newman a family physician in an independent private practice

for about 17 years

Using this program, you will experience a typical week in Dr. Newman's professional life, during which you will be called upon to make decisions in ten cases that raise ethical issues similar to those faced by many physicians in their practices.

The ethical considerations in these cases are often as important as those dealing with diagnosis and treatment.

It is the goal of the program that by working through these cases & confronting the difficult and often controversial dilemmas they present you become more aware of the ethical dimensions of medical practice and have the opportunity to explore the consequences of different choices.

The Doctor's Dilemma contains a considerable amount of information about the law and legal matters. While great care has been given to assure that information is accurate, it is not intended, in any way, to constitute legal advice nor should it be relied upon it as such. Nothing in this application should be interpreted as an offer or acceptance of any of the responsibilities incidental to an attorney-client relationship.

The characters presented in The Doctor's Dilemma (the doctors, consultants, and patients) are fictional and any similarities to any persons living or dead are unintended and coincidental. Similarly, the photographs that appear throughout the program are of people who were chosen because they matched the physical characteristics of the role they portray. These people do not necessarily have any of the medical or personal problems of the characters.

Throughout The Doctor's Dilemma, there is a menu bar positioned on the left side of the screen that functions as the navigation port for the entire program.

By selecting the various options in the menu, you can easily move throughout the program.

To assist in your decision making, you will have access to useful information through conversations with the consultants. These

individuals are people with whom you also have a personal relationship, and you feel quite comfortable soliciting their

opinions.

They will have access to useful background information which will help you finalize your ethical conclusions for each case.

Where possible, the role of law in medical ethics throughout The Doctor's Dilemma will be based upon the applicable law in your state. Choose your state on the map to view the state specific

information.

If information for a particular state is not available, information from the state of Georgia can be used as an example. You should be

aware that laws may vary significantly among different jurisdictions.

Once you have selected the "Get Started" option from the introductory menu, a screen will appear that gives you the

option of choosing a male or female doctor role.

Select a role/gender to begin the first case.

Case Links represent the steps that should be followed within each case.

The Schedule presents your complete daily schedule of patients and/or appointments, and tells you when you will be meeting with the patient whose case poses the ethical dilemma.

The Patient File provides you with medical and other background information about your patient and their condition.

The Patient button is the conversation or meeting with your patient and/or their family.

Within the course of your conversation, you will discuss the facets of the case that require ethical and medical consideration.

You can hover your mouse over the middle divider line and when you see the curser turn into a double sided arrow, you can click & drag on that center line either all the way to the right OR all the way to the left.

This will make 1 conversation window that you can just scroll down and read.

To assist in your decision making, you will have access to useful information through conversations with the consultants. These

individuals are people with whom you also have a personal relationship, and you feel quite comfortable soliciting their

opinions.

They will have access to useful background information which will help you finalize your ethical conclusions for each case.

The transcript of the conversation you have with the consultants may have certain words underlined and in bold.

You can click on the words and a pop-up window will appear, and the definition, contents of additional information related to the word will be displayed within it. When you are finished reviewing all of the background information, close the window, and resume activities within the case

The characters that you have conversations with may suggest that you review certain documents

The Resources will provide pertinent legal and ethical background information which will assist you in making your final decision about each case.

To view them click on the [Resources] button and a list of the available resource documents for this case will appear. Choose a document you wish to view and a pop-up window will open. The contents of the box, each time you click on a different document name.

When you are finished reviewing all of the background information, close the window, and resume activities within the case

Select the Decide option once you feel you have thoroughly reviewed the information about the case, and are ready to make your decision. This will lead you through a series of screens that will question the decision you have selected, and will ultimately inform you of the consequences of your choice.

Use the End Case option when you are ready to begin the next case. If you want to skip ahead to another case, choose the Patient List option under the Program Links heading.