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Invited Commentary

R Purtilo, PhD, FAPTA, is Director, Center for Health Policy and Ethics, Creighton University, 2500 California Plaza, Omaha, NE 68178

This excerpt was created in the absence of an abstract.

Triezenberg's study is a fine example of "descriptive ethics." Descriptive ethics uses the methods of empirical research to identify the perceived ethical issues facing practitioners or others in a given health professions group. The goal of descriptive ethics is to describe the factual basis of practice to better evaluate what ought to be encouraged in the profession. In that regard descriptive ethics is very much a part of the endeavor to create a more ethical environment for all involved in health care. The term "descriptive ethics" may be misleading to some, only insofar as most people think that ethics must concentrate directly on the right- or wrong-making characteristics of acts or the virtue of professionals. A more accurate distinction is to call the latter "normative ethics."

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