Affiliations 

  • 1 Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
  • 2 RIPAS Hospital, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
  • 3 Management and Science University, Malaysia
  • 4 Cyberjaya University College of Medical Sciences, Malaysia
  • 5 Asia Metropolitan University, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
  • 6 Universitas Jenderal Soedirman (UNSOED), Indonesia
  • 7 Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia
MyJurnal

Abstract

Autonomy is widely accepted to be the third pillar of medical ethics. However, if it comes to refusal of life saving treatments, some extra considerations are necessary, especially if decisions are made by surrogate decision makers. Four cases of problematic decision making are presented here, followed by a discussion about the cultural and religious misconceptions about the rights of surrogate decision makers.