Dependence and autonomy in old age : an ethical framework for long-term care / George J. Agich.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Agich, George J., 1947-

Contributor:

Agich, George J., 1947-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Older people--Long-term care--Moral and ethical aspects.

Older people.

Autonomy (Psychology) in old age.

Autonomy (Philosophy).

Older people--Long-term care.

Physical Description:

x, 207 pages ; 23 cm

Edition:

Second and revised edition.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, U.K. ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2003.

Summary:

Respecting the autonomy of disabled people is an important ethical issue for providers of long-term care. In this influential book, George Agich abandons comfortable abstractions to reveal the concrete threats to personal autonomy in this setting, where ethical conflict, dilemma, and tragedy are inescapable. He argues that liberal accounts of autonomy and individual rights are insufficient, and offers an account of autonomy that matches the realities of long-term care. The book therefore offers a framework for carers to develop an ethic of long-term care within the complex environment in which many dependent and aged people find themselves. Previously published as Autonomy and Long-term Care, this revised edition, in paperback for the first time, takes account of recent work and develops the author's views of what autonomy means in the real world. The author writes with passion and concern about his topic, combining a scholarly, phenomenological approach to ethics and personal identity with an awareness of the needs of vulnerable older people and their carers. The book will have wide appeal among bioethicists and health care professionals.

Contents:

Long-term care images 2

Autonomy and long-term care: the problem 8

2 The liberal theory of autonomy 13

Pluralism, toleration, and neutrality 14

The state and positive autonomy 21

Some problems with positive autonomy 22

Liberal principles in long-term care 24

The perils of liberal theory 29

Communitarianism and the contextualist alternative 31

Practical implications of the debate over the foundation of ethics 35

Conflict and conversation 37

The function of rights 39

Limitations of rights 41

Paternalism and the development of persons 43

From paternalism to parentalism 47

3 Long-term care: myth and reality 51

Myths of old age 52

Nursing homes 56

Therapeutic relationships 65

Concepts of illness and disease 69

Models of care 71

The concept of a practice 74

Home care 77

4 Actual autonomy 83

Result-oriented theories 84

Action-oriented theories 85

The concrete view of persons 89

Autonomy: a developmental perspective 93

Narrative approaches 98

Dependence in human development 101

Sickness as dependence 104

Autonomy and identification 108

The paradox of development and problems of identification 112

Implications for long-term care 117

5 A phenomenological view of actual autonomy 125

Sociality and the world of everyday life 125

General features of the social nature of persons 129

Space 136

Time 143

Communication 152

Affectivity 159

6 Autonomy and long-term care: another look 165

Social reality of Eastside 165

Appeal to autonomy as independence 167

A phenomenologically informed analysis 168

Theories of autonomy 174.

Notes:

Previously published as: Autonomy and long-term care.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 181-202) and index.

Related Work:

Agich, George J., 1947- Autonomy and long-term care.

ISBN:

0521009200

OCLC:

50447692

Online:

Publisher description