- Thu Sep 03, 2020 1:54 pm
#78723
Hi AAron24!
I can certainly address this question.
First, the question stem asks, "Which one of the following principles, if established, helps most to justify Scott's evaluation of the psychiatrist's actions?" This tells us that we're dealing with a question that can be categorized as a strengthen and principle question type (each answer choice is a principle, with the right answer being a principle that--if added--would strengthen the argument).
Second, we're specifically asked to strengthen Scott's evaluation of the mentioned psychiatrist's actions, namely, the action of releasing the poems of a poet after the poet's death. Scott's conclusion is, "Hence the psychiatrist who released tapes of a poet's therapy sessions after the poet's death violated his oath by his actions." He concludes that releasing this information violated the Hippocratic oath.
Lastly, answer choice (D) strengthens this conclusion that the psychiatrist violated the Hippocratic oath. Answer choice (D) states, "Since any psychiatrist's divulging to the public information about a patient could undermine the trust of other patients in their psychiatrists, no patient can release a psychiatrist from the obligation to keep patient information confidential." What this answer choice is saying is that divulging information it's still a violation even if the patient consents ("no patient can release a psychiatrist from the obligation"). If that principle were established as true, it would strengthen Scott's conclusion that the psychiatrist he discusses did indeed violate the Hippocratic oath by releasing the poems, regardless of how they would be used.
