The Law and Ethics of Dementia

Just published:  The Law and Ethics of Dementia, edited by: Charles Foster, Jonathan Herring, Israel Doron



Dementia is a topic of enormous human, medical, economic, legal and ethical importance. Its importance grows as more of us live

longer. The legal and ethical problems it raises are complex, intertwined and under-discussed. This book brings together contributions from clinicians, lawyers and ethicists - all of them world leaders in the field of dementia - and is a comprehensive, scholarly yet accessible library of all the main (and many of the fringe) perspectives. 



It begins with the medical facts: what is dementia? Who gets it? What are the current and future therapeutic and palliative options? What are the main challenges for medical and nursing care? The story is then taken up by the ethicists, who grapple with questions such as: is it legitimate to lie to dementia patients if that is a kind thing to do? Who is the person whose memory, preferences and personality have all been transformed by their disease? Should any constraints be placed on the sexual activity of patients? Are GPS tracking devices an unpardonable interference with the patient's freedom? These issues, and many more, are then examined through legal lenses. The book closes with accounts from dementia sufferers and their carers. It is the first and only book of its kind, and the authoritative text.



The book is divided into five main sections:

1. Medical Fundamentals


2. Ethical Perspectives


3. Legal Perspectives


4. Social Aspects


5. Patient & Carer Perspectives

Twelve of the 44 chapters are in the legal section:

23. A Legal Overview Mary Donnelly

24. Assessing Capacity Lesley King and Hugh Series

25. Best Interests and Dementia Jonathan Herring

26. Proxy Decision-Making: A Legal Perspective Winsor C Schmidt

27. Being and Being Lost: Personal Identity and Dementia Jesse Wall

28. Dementia, Autonomy and Guardianship for the Old Margaret Isabel Hall

29. Restriction of Liberty Michael Schindler and Yael Waksman

30. Research on Patients with Dementia Phil Bielby

31. Dementia and Carers: Relationality and Informal Carers’ Experiences Rosie Harding

32. End-of-Life Care Ofra G Golan

33. Health Care Resource Allocation Issues in Dementia Keith Syrett

34. The Use of New Technologies in the Managementof Dementia Patients Karen Eltis