ABSTRACT

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book describes different legal approaches to medical confidentiality and to the conflict between medical confidentiality and competing interests in the context of crime prevention and criminal prosecution. It identifies the factors which might cause these differences and suggests criteria for an ethically and legally convincing approach to the different conflicts of interests. The book presents a detailed description and analysis of the relevant law of four different countries. It focuses on conflicts between medical confidentiality and the interests in crime prevention and criminal prosecution. The book introduces the theoretical and philosophical discussion of the different values, interests and conflicts involved by the two predominant approaches to medical ethics: the deontological and the utilitarian schools of thought. It discusses from a comparative perspective and evaluates the solutions promoted by different legal systems.