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Published on: February 16, 2011
Ethical issues in using deception to facilitate rehabilitation for a patient with severe traumatic brain injury
Jessica Matthes1, Heather Caples
1Department of Clinical Neuropsychology, Barrow Neurological Institute, St Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ, USA. jmatthes@wakemed.org
Objective:
To explore ethical issues in using deception to improve participation in a patient with severe traumatic brain injury who had not responded to traditional behavioral and pharmacologic approaches.
Design:
Case study.
Participant:
A male in inpatient neurorehabilitation with history of severe traumatic brain injury and significant behavioral disruption that limited his therapy participation.
Methods:
Behavior modification program using principles of operant conditioning that required deception.
Results:
Participation in therapies significantly improved and disruptive behaviors decreased.
Conclusion:
When used cautiously and with careful consideration of the ethical implications, deception may be permissible as part of an intervention strategy with this population but only as a last resort.
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