title: Jehovah's Witness parents' refusal of blood transfusions: Ethical considerations for psychologists.
abstract: Psychologists in medical settings may be confronted with Jehovah's Witness parents refusing blood transfusions for their children as an ethical dilemma. The purpose of this discussion is to help psychologists provide informed, ethical consultations and support by investigating the values of the Jehovah's Witness community and the origin of the blood transfusion taboo, how medical and legal professionals have approached this dilemma, exploring relevant ethical principles and standards for psychologists, and suggestions for how to move toward a better understanding of harm with Jehovah's Witness families.
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa, USA anna-hoffman@uiowa.edu.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hoffman
mesh_terms: D001803:Blood Transfusion; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D033221:Jehovah's Witnesses; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012068:Religion and Medicine; D016312:Treatment Refusal / Q000941:ethics*
keywords: beliefs; clinical health psychology; culture; family; religion