Ethics & Law · single question

A patient has caries and some non-restorable teeth, but wants to extract ALL of his teeth. Which two ethical principles are in conflict?

  1. Non-maleficence and beneficence
  2. Beneficence and autonomy
  3. Veracity and autonomy
  4. Veracity and beneficence
Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. Beneficence and autonomy

The patient has the autonomous right to choose his own treatment (even one the dentist disagrees with), but the dentist's duty of beneficence is to recommend and encourage what is actually in the patient's best interest (preserving restorable teeth rather than extracting them unnecessarily) — creating a classic autonomy-vs-beneficence conflict.

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