Mario J. Cruz-Montoya, Centro Interdisciplinario de Bioética, Universidad Panamericana, Ciudad de México, México
María de la L. Casas-Martínez, Centro Interdisciplinario de Bioética, Universidad Panamericana, Ciudad de México, México
Objective: Identify the knowledge and attitudes regarding conscientious objection among general and family physicians practicing in the primary healthcare level in Mexico and Spanish-speaking countries in Central America, the Caribbean, and South America. Methods: A systematic review of scientific literature using the PRISMA methodology was conducted to identify, select, and critically analyze studies on the knowledge and attitudes regarding conscientious objection among general and family physicians. Results: The scarcity of scientific literature identified highlights the complexity of the topic within primary care, and underscores the need to expand research on the knowledge and attitudes regarding the exercise of the right to individual conscientious objection among general and family physicians in Mexico and Spanish-speaking countries in Central America, the Caribbean, and South America. Conclusions: It is priority to investigate the attitudes and knowledge of general and family physicians regarding the application of conscientious objection in procedures such as providing contraceptive methods, in vitro fertilization, abortion, gender reassignment surgeries, and euthanasia. Furthermore, there is a recognized need to employ rigorous and objective methodologies, free from bias, to understand how conscientious objection interacts with specific legal and social realities across diverse geographic and cultural contexts, particularly in Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries in Americas.
Keywords: Conscientious objection. Family physicians. Primary care physicians. Knowledge. Attitudes. Bioethics. Systematic review.