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Tallis in Wonderland

My Bald Head

Raymond Tallis reveals the philosophical connection between medical ethics and hair loss.

A little while back I was chairing a session at a meeting on the criminalisation of medical error, organised by Margot Brazier, Professor of Law at Manchester University. The meeting was linked to a research programme prompted by the concern that increasing numbers of doctors were being prosecuted for mistakes. In some cases, prosecution seemed contrary to natural justice. While the consequences had been appalling for the patients, the behaviour of the doctors did not seem to be particularly reprehensible. Circumstances had turned human error into catastrophe.

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