The Case of the Long-Distance Cancer Treatment

Alan contracted cancer at the age of 40. You’ve followed his illness carefully ever since he began treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma at University Hospital. Alan’s HMO wants to send him to a different hospital — Fair Oaks — a couple of hours away. The HMO can pull Alan away from his home, especially now when he’s so sick. His wife will probably have to quit her job to be with him, and their other friends and family will never get there. And all those stem cells he now needs and that they’ve harvested – they’ll probably have to start all over again at the new hospital! Alan Jr. got pretty upset when the HMO said they weren’t concerned that he would be inconvenienced.

• How would you sort through the ethics of this situation?

Apply Theory (Specific Professional Healthcare Competencies + Clinical Medical Ethical Principles) to Practice in order to provide Optimal Patient-Centered Care (OPCC)

Source – Santa Clara University, Markkula Center for Applied Ethics