They cover genetics, resource allocation and community psychiatry. A practitioner may not come to the same conclusions as the authors on every issue, but his or her thinking about difficult ethical issues will doubtless be enhanced by this reference book. Confidentiality is a professional issue with its associated responsibilities, whereas privacy relates to an individual's choice on disclosure of information and remains in the person's own domain. However, as medicine is increasingly involved in complex legal processes, the separate issue of privacy is worthy of consideration. This is the benchmark ethical textbook for mental health workers and administrators and is relevant to any clinician or ethicist.
Psychiatric ethics is well written and good value for money.