The Challenges of Balancing the Right of Patient to Express His or Her Religious Beliefs During Medical Treatment with the Physicians’ Duty to Respect Patients’ Right to Self-Determination.

Description

Objectives*
The aim of the research is to analyse whether and how the right of the capable adult patient to express his or her religious beliefs during medical treatment can be balanced with the certified physicians’, who is also an attending physician, duty to respect patients’ right to self-determination in the Republic of Latvia.
Materials and Methods
In the research the author analyses case law, legal acts, and scientific literature in the field of medical law. Likewise, to identify practical examples and problem issues, the author uses general scientific methods such as theoretical modelling method, analytical method, and deductive and inductive method and methods of the interpretation of the legal provisions such as grammatical, systematic, historical, and teleological.
Results
Patients have the right to self-determination, which allows them to make their own medical decisions freely, without control or influence. It also includes the patient right to refuse medical treatment based on his or her religious beliefs. The research revealed several key challenges concerning national legal acts which can disturb to achieve the balance between the right to freedom of religion and respect for the patient's right to self-determination in medical treatment in the Republic of Latvia.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the research are as follows.
1. National legal acts should provide that medical education and ongoing professional development should include modules focused on cultural competence and religious sensitivity.
2.National legal acts should require medical institutions, especially in-patient facilities, to have communication guidelines for patients with specific religious beliefs.

Period	28 Mar 2025
Event title	Research week 2025: PLACES
Event type	Conference
Conference number	4th
Organiser	Rīga Stradiņš University
Location	Riga, LatviaShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International