ABSTRACT
The process of a medically supported pregnancy, beginning with hormonal stimulation and possibly ending with in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection, has been the focus of many lectures and papers concerning the modern reproductive technology. The subject of an ethical decision with regards to IVF and alternative treatment depends on the context: it is not only the couple who undergoes the special therapy to have a child, but the medical staff has to make decisions, too. With respect to the ethical aspects of decision-making the recourse to the patients’ autonomy as well as to die principle of beneficence seemed to be a sufficent basis for the counselling. The chapter is concerned with the individual decision of a couple, the two ethical guidelines: free and informed consent as a condition and counselling as support of the action referring to IVF are not questioned.
