A survey of Calgary paediatricians' attitudes regarding the treatment of defective newborns: a report from Canada.

... Premature infants and those born with severe abnormalities have stimulated the creation of neonatal units, but advances in medicine have created the dilemma of whether to sustain life in neonates who would otherwise die from their abnormalities. Often these methods are sophisticated and costly, and carry their own share of iatrogenic complications... It is crucial that the infant -- unable to be directly involved -- have an advocate, whose role it is to act in the best interests of the patient in determinations of the latter's treatment. Under most circumstances that role is occupied by the child's physician and family... For this reason, it is imperative to discern physicians' -- and specifically pediatricians' -- attitudes towards the treatment of defective newborns. To accomplish this, a survey was taken in Calgary... It is the purpose of this paper to provide information regarding local physicians' views and how they compare with the opinions of their colleagues from other countries.