ABSTRACT
This chapter explores decision-making in midwifery care from an ethical perspective and what ‘doing good’ means for midwives around the globe when engaging with a woman in the decision-making process during the perinatal period. The ethical virtue of ‘doing good’ is universal, even though the enabling environment of midwives to support women in the decision-making process may differ per circumstance, setting and country. Ethical dilemmas are defined as ‘decision-making problems involving two or more courses of action, neither of which are unambiguously acceptable or preferable’. Dilemmas in healthcare are often addressed with the four principles of biomedical ethics: respect for autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice. Care ethics offers another perspective on what is morally desirable around dilemmas in midwifery care as it takes into consideration power inequalities; it supports the primacy of the midwife-woman relationship present within midwifery philosophy. The absence of an absolute right answer that solves concerns of everybody involved is what makes the issue an ethical dilemma.
