On the Cultivation and Promotion of the Concept of "Mutual Assistance" during the COVID-19 Prevention and Control Period / 中国医学伦理学

"Mutual assistance" with profound moral significance, is a traditional social moral code and way of life, inherits the essence of ancient philosophers, is gradually regarded as a principle of dealing with neighborhood and social relations, which embodies the organic unity of social value and individual value. Actively carrying forward the ethical idea of "mutual assistance" is of great practical significance for preventing and controlling COVID-19, winning the prevention and control war, and promoting the construction of community of human health. Therefore, it is necessary to cultivate and practice "mutual assistance" vigorously to strengthen the moral consciousness of "life first", stimulate individual moral consciousness, and construct social benign moral relations.

A Response to the Legitimacy of Brain Death in Islam.

Brain death is a novel construct of death for the procurement of transplantable organs. Many authoritative Islamic organizations and governments have endorsed brain death as true death for organ donation. Many commentators have reiterated the misconception that the Quranic text does not define death. We respond by clarifying: (1) the Quran does define death as biologic disintegration and clearly distinguishes it from the dying process, (2) brain death belongs scientifically within the spectrum of neurologic disorders of consciousness and should not be confused with death, and (3) religious and legal discord about brain death has grown in jurisdictions worldwide. We urge for public transparency and truthfulness about brain death and the accommodation and respect of religious objection to the determination of death by neurologic criteria.

Ethics and maternity care: from principles to practice.

In this column, the associate editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education (JPE) discusses the decision to devote an issue of JPE to the ethics of childbirth and maternity care. The current crisis in maternity care mandates a careful look at the ethical principles that provide the foundation for practice. The contents of this special issue include: a broad overview of ethics of childbearing, historical perspectives and contemporary understanding of informed decision making, the ethical issues faced by childbirth educators, and the challenges and moral distress experienced by childbirth educators and other maternity care providers when their values, beliefs, and ethical standards are in conflict with standard maternity care practices.