RT Book, Section A1 Mayo, Thomas Wm. A1 Reed, Perry Ann A1 Giardino, Angelo P. A2 Kline, Mark W. SR Print(0) ID 1182915546 T1 Law, Ethics, and Clinical Judgment T2 Rudolph's Pediatrics, 23e YR 2018 FD 2018 PB McGraw-Hill Education PP New York, NY SN 9781259588594 LK accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1182915546 RD 2024/03/29 AB In pediatrics, it is the child—not the parent—who is the patient, and the pediatrician’s professional, ethical, and legal obligations are owed to the child. While parents in our society have been given wide latitude to raise children as they see fit, there are matters with respect to which the state can appropriately intervene: Parents may spank their children, but child abuse is not permitted. Parents may choose a variety of educational settings and resources for their children, but the state does demand that children achieve some level of literacy. Pediatricians, therefore, care for children and work with their parents in a social context that requires their intervention in ways that may range from working with parents to make decisions of great medical complexity (see Chapter 123) to notifying the state of suspected neglect or abuse (see Chapter 36).