失智症患者治療與照護之倫理議題

Ethical Issues in the Treatment and Care for Dementia Patients

隨著台灣步向高齡化社會、失智症患者數量逐年增加，失智症患者之醫療與照護已經成為重要的醫療與社會問題。本文探討失智患者治療與照護之相關倫理議題，包括：失智症之藥物治療、參與臨床試驗、一般生活照護、病情告知、醫療決策、基因檢測、末期照護、患者及家屬之社會支持等，並提出相關建議與指引，作者期望籍本文之分析與論述，對台灣未來失智症患者之照護及對照護者的支持，以及相關政策制定能有所助益。

As Taiwan has entered the stage of aging society and the number of dementia patient increases rapidly through years, health care for dementia patients has become important medical and social problems. In this paper, we examine the ethical issues arising from the treatment and care for dementia patients including: drug therapy, participation in clinical trials, informed consent, medical decision making, genetic testing, terminal care, family and social support etc. We then propose certain ethical considerations and recommendations based on these discussions. It is hoped that through our deliberation, analysis and policy recommendations, the quality of future health care for dementia patients and psychosocial support for their caregivers in Taiwan can be improved.