Exploring the Ethical Issues and Ethical Guidelines In Genetic Testing

• Main Authors: Ya-Fang Chang, 張雅芳
• Other Authors: Mei-Chin Huang
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/69501426399729219273

碩士 === 國立成功大學 === 護理學系碩博士班 === 97 === Advanced genetic technology and science are fast improved in recent years. Utilizing the genetic testing not only diagnose or predict the disease and analyze the risk degree of the genetic disorders, but also offer the life guidance to those who receive genetic testing promptly, and encourage them to deal with their health in positive manner. Therefore, the handicapped could be avoided and the burden of society could be reduced. Although genetic testing is beneficial, in adverse, it also carries out some ethical, legal, social issues (ELSI). It included “gene privacy”, “gene discrimination” and “gene equality in resource allocation”, and so on. To retrieve the comprehensive information, triangulation research method was adopted to gather the materials which contained literatures about the ethics issues on genetic testing, documents of ethical principles and guidelines, and procedure of genetic testing in medical institutes locally and internationally. Meanwhile, the discussion records of the expert meetings conducted by project funded by Department of Health (DOH) regarding the appropriate localized ethical guidelines were analyzed. The true circumstances of ethical issues of genetic testing were figured out from multiple aspects. The content analysis and data triangulation was used to conclude the common ethical issues of genetic testing. Four major themes -- informed consent, gene information, result disclosure, and quality assurance, with 14 relevant ethical issues of genetic testing were formed and deeply investigated respectively. Eventually, the localized strategies of ethical issues of genetic testing were conceived and the 14 Q & As were established. Results of the study would serve as references for clinical practice. Accordingly, the service provider will comprehend the possible derived ethical issues while offering the genetic testing service to guarantee the safety and rights of testing receiver. Moreover, the results provide the preliminary suggestions for constructing the localized ethical guidelines on genetic testing.