Conscientious objection

A doctor’s right to decline to provide a treatment that conflicts with their personal beliefs, provided they do not abandon the patient and refer them to another clinician.

The key professional duty is continuity: you may object, but you must not obstruct the patient’s access to lawful care and must refer them on promptly.

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.

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