Clinical ethics support services in New Zealand-tailoring services to meet the needs of doctors.
OBJECTIVE
To better understand senior doctors' attitudes to clinical ethics support services at Capital and Coast District Health Board (CCDHB), in order to better tailor clinical ethics support services in New Zealand to the needs of doctors.


METHODS
We conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 14 senior doctors at CCDHB in 2011 and 2012. Data analysis was inductive and iterative.


RESULTS
Doctors primarily rely on informal avenues of peer consultation for support when making difficult ethical decisions. Many participants saw a potential role for formal ethics support, but expressed concern about how ethics support services would fit into their clinical practice. Primary concerns included the accessibility of support services and moral responsibility for ethical decision making in clinical settings.


CONCLUSIONS
Doctors are more willing to engage in ethics support services where they are able to participate in, or at least observe, the decision-making process.
Department of Primary Health Care and General Practice, University of Otago Wellington, Wellington.
Angela
A
Ballantyne
Department of Paediatrics, Whangarei Hospital, New Zealand.
Elizabeth
E
Dai
D026683:Advisory Committees / Q000458:organization & administration; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003657:Decision Making / Q000941:ethics*; D017041:Ethics Committees / Q000458:organization & administration; D026690:Ethics, Clinical / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D009520:New Zealand; D010820:Physicians / Q000941:ethics*