Ethics - OR- Why I shouldn't become a doctor.

So. My interview that partially determines whether or not I will be accepted into the Med course at UWS is tomorrow. Instead of researching how the Australian healthcare system works, the course requirements etc, I am sitting here blogging. Maybe it's because I'm not wholehearted sure I want to become a doctor. I know that if I want something desperately enough I will get it. I usually get what I want (more on that later).

I know that I've wanted to become either a psychologist or a psychiatrist for a long time. Probably since Lief walked into my life actually. I find people, their behaviour, their habits, their ways of thinking very interesting, and I'd like to work in a career where I can learn something I'm interested in.

I've been looking at the questions that I may be asked tomorrow. For example:

Dr Cheung recommends homeopathic medicines to
his patients. There is no scientific evidence or
widely accepted theory to suggest that homeopathic
medicines work, and Dr Cheung doesn’t believe
them to. He recommends homeopathic medicine
to people with mild and non-specific symptoms
such as fatigue, headaches and muscle aches,
because he believes that it will do no harm, but will
give them reassurance.

Consider the ethical problems that Dr Cheung’s
behaviour might pose. Discuss these issues with the
interviewer.

The above was taken from:
Kevin W Eva, Jack Rosenfeld, Harold I Reiter, Geoffrey R Norman (2004)
An admissions OSCE: the multiple mini-interview
Medical Education 38 (3), 314–326.

Well, ethically speaking, it's wrong to lie. Experimenting with a placebo on a patient without consent is unethical. If he wanted to reassure the patient, then he should consult with the patient about how the homeopathic remedy hasn't been scientifically proven, but it's an alternative to Western medicine.

Those are the answers given by a few prospective medical students.

I looked at the question, and couldn't find the dilemma.

I think I may be trouble. My ethics are questionable at best. Given a choice between letting a group of innocents die, and a letting one innocent die, I would usually choose one innocent