AGAINST HOMEOPATHY – A UTILITARIAN PERSPECTIVE

I examine the positive and negative features of homeopathy from an ethical perspective. I consider: (a) several potentially beneficial features of homeopathy, including non-invasiveness, cost-effectiveness, holism, placebo benefits and agent autonomy; and (b) several potentially negative features of...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Smith, Kevin (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Wiley-Blackwell 2012
In: Bioethics
Year: 2012, Volume: 26, Issue: 8, Pages: 398-409
Further subjects:B Complementary medicine
B Alternative Medicine
B Cam
B Homeopathy
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Summary:I examine the positive and negative features of homeopathy from an ethical perspective. I consider: (a) several potentially beneficial features of homeopathy, including non-invasiveness, cost-effectiveness, holism, placebo benefits and agent autonomy; and (b) several potentially negative features of homeopathy, including failure to seek effective healthcare, wastage of resources, promulgation of false beliefs and a weakening of commitment to scientific medicine. A utilitarian analysis of the utilities and disutilities leads to the conclusion that homeopathy is ethically unacceptable and ought to be actively rejected by healthcare professionals.
ISSN:1467-8519
Contains:Enthalten in: Bioethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8519.2010.01876.x