The Ethical Dilemma of Balancing Confidentiality and Duty to Protect: A Case Report of Comorbid Schizophrenia and Cannabis Use Disorder with Homicidal Thoughts.

This is a report of a 29-year-old female with a history of Schizophrenia and Cannabis Use Disorder who presented with auditory hallucinations that asked her to kill her immediate supervisor. She presented the ethical dilemma many healthcare providers face in balancing the principles of patient confidentiality with the duty to protect and beneficence. The clinicians breached the patient's right to confidentiality to protect her supervisor by informing the supervisor, their manager, and the police.

Hidden dangers-prevalence of blood borne pathogens, hepatitis B, C, HIV and syphilis, among blood donors in Sierra Leone in 2016: opportunities for improvement: a retrospective, cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Transmissible blood-borne infections are a serious threat to blood transfusion safety in West African countries; and yet blood remains a key therapeutic product in the clinical management of patients. Sierra Leone screens blood donors for blood-borne infections but has not implemented prevention of mother-to-child transmission for hepatitis B. This study aimed to describe the overall prevalence of hepatitis B and C, HIV and syphilis among blood donors in Sierra Leone in 2016 and to compare the differences between volunteer versus family replacement donors, as well as urban versus rural donors.

A Structured Approach to End-of-Life Decision Making Improves Quality of Care for Patients With Terminal Illness in a Teaching Hospital in Ghana.

Purpose: To determine whether a structured approach to end-of-life decision-making directed by a compassionate interdisciplinary team would improve the quality of care for patients with terminal illness in a teaching hospital in Ghana.

Findings: A retrospective analysis was done for 20 patients who consented to participate in the structured approach to end-of-life decision-making. Twenty patients whose care did not follow the structured approach were selected as controls.

Controlling Sickle Cell Disease in Ghana--ethics and options.

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is a significant public health burden in Ghana. Recent studies indicate that 2% of Ghanaian newborns are affected by SCD; one in three Ghanaians has the hemoglobin S and/or C gene. As a means of controlling the disease, some authorities have recommended prenatal diagnosis (PND) and selective abortion.