EthicsIntermediateMMI station
A patient insists on a cosmetic procedure you believe is unnecessary and could damage healthy teeth. They've already paid in full. What do you do?
Ethical dilemma: Competing duties with no perfect answer: consent, confidentiality, fairness.
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Sample answer outline
- Understand their goal: what do they want to change about their smile, and why now?
- Explain the risks honestly: removing healthy tooth structure is irreversible.
- Offer conservative alternatives that meet the goal, such as whitening, bonding or orthodontics.
- If you still believe it causes harm, decline and refund. Payment doesn't change your duty.
- Document the discussion.
What makes it work
- It separates the patient's goal from the procedure they asked for.
- Being clear about the payment shows integrity.
How to approach ethical dilemma questions
- Clarify the facts and what you would want to know before acting.
- Name who is affected and the principles in tension: autonomy, doing good, avoiding harm, fairness, confidentiality.
- Walk through realistic options, starting with the least drastic.
- Choose a course of action, explain why, and say who you would involve.
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