Publications

ETENE publications discuss general principles in ethical issues in the field of social welfare and health care and concerning the status of patients and clients. Recommendations issued are intended for ordinary citizens, for social welfare and health care professionals, and for political elected officials and decision-makers. The purpose of ETENE publications is to guide social welfare and health care professionals to ethically sustainable practices.

ETENEs brochure / bookmark
National Advisory Board on Social Welfare and Health Care Ethics ETENE
Valtakunnallinen sosiaali- ja terveysalan eettinen neuvottelukunta ETENE (Finnish)
Riksomfattande etiska delegationen inom social- och hälsovården ETENE (Swedish)

ETENE-publications in English:

►Publication 34: Ethical grounds for the social and health care field, 2012 Publication 27: Mental health ethics - you and I have a moral responsibility, 2009

The purpose of the present publication is to extend the consideration of ethics to social services in addition to health care: what is right and what
is good when we consider human individuals in the entire field of social welfare and health care? This discussion may yield new insights or confirm our belief that our everyday routines have not become dissociated from their ethical foundations. Ethics expertise can be promoted in many different ways.

►Publication 27: Mental health ethics - you and I have a moral responsibility, 2009

ETENE has published a report on the ethical aspects of mental health care. The purpose of this report is to summarise the principles of good practices in mental health care and to safeguard the rights of mental health patients and clients and their families, to help them participate in society and to improve their status. ETENE is thus contributing to a public debate about the values on which mental health promotion is based, about the requirements for the users of those services to lead a life of human dignity, about the right to self-determination and about equal and human treatment. We hope that this report will contribute to a discussion of what is sound mental health promotion.

►Publication 22: Report on elderly care, 2008

ETENE published on 24 April 2008 a report on ethics in elderly care. As summary the advisory board states:

• Treating elderly persons as individuals forms the basis of ethically sustainable eldercare.
• Eldercare is provided jointly by social services and health care, and comprehensive planning is therefore essential.
• Elderly people have the right to participate in decision-making regarding their care and care facility.
• Elderly people have the right to safe medication.
• The patient's age should never be a reason for denying treatment. However, age-related illnesses and alterations in functional capacity may increase the risks of adverse reactions to therapies and certain treatment measures, which should be taken into consideration when planning treatment. This may also influence treatment decisions.
• Elderly people have a right to be protected by society against exploitation and self-inflicted harm, but their right to self-determination must also be respected as far as possible.
• The status of family caregivers should be reinforced and they should receive better support.
• Elderly people have the right to good symptomatic care and a dignified death. If an elderly person has issued an advance directive or a living will, it must be respected.

►Publication 14: Brochure about ETENE and TUKIJA, 2005

ETENE and TUKIJA have published an information brochure about their function, publications and contact details. The printed version of this brochure can be ordered by telephone, email or via the feed back page of this web site.

►Publication 3: Shared values in Health Care, Common Goals and Principles, 2001

ETENE has published shared ethical code for health care in February 2002. With this publication ETENE wishes to rise societal discussion about values and goals in health care. The shared principles have been written not only for those who work with patients but also for those whose actions have an effect in health care at large, e.g. decision makers or politicians.

Other publications in English:

►Report on ethical evaluation of reseach in Finland, 2002/2006

ETENE, TUKIJA, The National Advisory Board on Research Ethics (TENK), the National Advisory Board for Biotechnology (BTNK), The Board for Gene Technology and the Cooperation group for Laboratory Animal Sciences published a report on ethical evaluation of research in Finland. Text and the outlook of the publication was revised in Spring 2006.

►Report on Stem Cells, Cloning and Research, 2005

The National Ethics Advisory Boards, i.e. The National Advisory Board on Research Ethics, the National Advisory on Health Care Ethics, the Sub-Committee on Medical Research Ethics, Cooperation Group for Laboratory Animal Sciences, National Advisory Board on Biotechnology and Board for Gene Technology published in 2003 a report on human stem cells, cloning and research in Finnish. Now this report is available in English. The printed version can be ordered via the feed back page and also from the other national advisory boards.

►Report on medical research on children, 2003

The working group of ETENE about medical research conducted on children recommends:

• that the seld-determination of the child should be expanded with a separate information sheet and consent form. In the information sheet it is important to emphasize issues that are important to her consent.
• the child should not participate in more than one invasive scientific research study at a time
• special courses in research conducted on children be organised at the Faculties of Medicine.
• more thought should be given to who should provide the necessary information about the research and request the consent needed for the research from the child and the child's parents.

►Report on End-of-life Care, 2003

ETENE published a report on end-of-life care in Autumn 2003. Now this report has been published in printed form in FInnish and Swedish, and can be bound in English in ETENE´s internet-pages. In this report ETENE focuses on the rights of patients for end-of-life care. Recommendations can be found in page 15 (Chapter 9).

►Report on DNA-samples in epidemiological research, 2002

The report of a working group about DNA-samples in epidemiological research deals with the use and the conditions for use of DNA samples collected in relatively large population studies, with special attention given to actual scientific research conducted in universities and research institutions. Trials conducted for commercial purposes may involve other aspects, which are not discussed here. This memorandum and discussion based on it are meant to help create guidelines for ethics committees that would facilitate the handling of population-level DNA research.

►Equity and Human Dignity in Health Care in Finland, 2001

As a topic of its third and Millennium year ETENE had an internal seminar about equity and human dignity in Health Care in Finland. The summary and presentations in the seminar have been included in this publication that can be obtained as a booklet from ETENE in Finnish.