Table 5.

Ethical and legal arguments against a secret search of patients' possessions to look for evidence of factitious disease^∗

Ethical issues:

• The patient has a right to self-determination.

• The patient has the right to be informed and to approve or disapprove of any diagnostic procedure.

• Ordering unnecessary tests as a ruse to get the patient out of the hospital room is repugnant.

Legal issues:

• The patient's right to control her destiny supersedes society's interest in preserving her life.

• A search is beyond the bounds of the implied contract between the doctor and the patient.

Privacy issues:

• A purse or suitcase is something meant to be private. It might be acceptable to search a hospital nightstand but not the patient's purse.

∗From reference 29.