Beneficence
The principle of beneficence is a moral obligation to act to benefit others,
that is, to act in the interest of others. This principle can be placed on a
continuum with nonmaleficence. Prevention of harm should be placed between the
two. Since many persons enter the profession of physical therapy because they
want to help others, this principle should seem obvious as an obligation. There
are, however, risks associated with beneficence. Sometimes we want to help our
patients so much, that we begin to believe that we know 
what
is best for them. We sometimes believe that they should do whatever we recommend
since we have the most knowledge about their condition. The intentional
overriding of one person's known preferences by another person is called
paternalism. When we believe that we know what is best for a patient even when
they do not agree, we risk stepping over the boundary from beneficence to
paternalism. When this happens, the patient's autonomy is not respected.
Some examples of paternalism would include providing a treatment that the patient has refused. Withholding all or part of the information that a patient needs to make an informed decision in order to sway the patient to agree to your recommendation is also a form of paternalism. In a broader sense, the government's health policies can be considered paternalistic, for example motorcycle helmet laws. Our government has decided that there are more compelling reasons, such as the person's good and financial considerations, to restrict a person's autonomy and thus be paternalistic in its regulations. If you find that you are trying to convince patients to do things your way by saying, "It is for your own good," you might be using a form of paternalism.