Saskatchewan Cancer Agency Ethics Program

Ethics: Where Practice Meets Principle

Every day pa​tients, families, health-care professionals and administrative staff make decisions about how to provide the very best care possible. Sometimes, situations arise that present unique challenges – particularly when conflicting expectations, standards of care and value systems are involved.

hands of different skin colours (white, olive, brown) clasping in a circle with a white tiled background.

What is bioethics?

Bioethics is the study of controversial issues brought about as a result of new developments in biology and medicine and their effects on patients, families and health-care providers. It is a key component of clinical care, organizational decision making and research in health-care organizations.

What is an ethical dilemma/issue?

Ethical issues arise when competing values or duties pull us in different directions (e.g., you want to be honest, but you are worried that the truth may cause harm to someone).

Ethics program

The Saskatchewan Cancer Agency and the Saskatchewan Health Authority have formed a joint Ethics Committee to foster an organizational culture focused on ethical practice and decision-making. The committee works collaboratively with St. Paul’s Hospital and the Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan to ensure that an ethics program is in place to support patients, families, staff and stakeholders.

Did you know

  • Anyone can request a bioethics consultation
  • Bioethics consultants are available 24/7

Patients and their families can contact their local ethicist, Healthline 811. 

What does an ethics consultant do?

 An ethics consultant works with you and those involved, ensuring that all options are carefully considered. The ethics consultant will try to help you figure out what is most important to you, and help you find ways to deal with the things you are worried might happen because of your decision. 

African American women with short brown hair, sitting at a desk wearing tinted eye-glasses in a grey sweater and a white top with a caucaisn blond-haired ponytailed women in a blue scrub top with a white long-sleeved shirt underneath wearing a stethascope around her neck sitting at a computer desk with a computer.

When should I request an ethics consult? 

  • When you have to make a choice, but you are uncertain what the “right” choice is.
  • When it seems impossible to reach an agreement on which value, belief or duty should be preferred. 
  • When you have tried as a team to resolve disagreements and reach consensus on what the “right” choice is but have not been successful.

What can I expect from an ethics consultation?

A consultation may take place over the phone, in-person or through a meeting with you and anyone you think needs to be part of the decision-making process. The ethics consultant will let you know if there is anyone else who can help you with your decisions, such as a lawyer or a social worker, and work with you to make sure you feel comfortable as you move forward with making your decision. You do not need to follow the advice of the ethics consultant. They are there to offer you suggestions and support you, not to take your decision away from you.