All terms
Beneficence
The duty to act in the patient’s best interests and to do good — weighing the benefits of an intervention for that individual.
Beneficence is balanced against autonomy: you recommend what you believe will help, but you cannot impose it on a patient with capacity who declines.
More glossary terms
- ABCDE approachA systematic method for assessing and treating an acutely unwell patient — Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure — dealing with each before moving on.
- AMPLE historyA focused emergency history — Allergies, Medications, Past history, Last meal, Events — taken quickly in acute situations.
- ARCPThe annual assessment that decides whether a doctor in training has met the competencies to progress to the next stage.
- AVPU scaleA rapid way to grade consciousness — Alert, responds to Voice, responds to Pain, Unresponsive — used in initial assessment.
Put it into practice
Rehearse PLAB 2 stations with AI simulated patients and get structured feedback after every consultation.
Start free