Which ethical principle promotes patient well-being?

• A. Fidelity
• B. Beneficence
• C. Nonmaleficence
• D. Confidentiality

Answer: (B)

Beneficence means acting to promote the patient’s well-being by providing care that benefits health, comfort, and overall welfare. It guides you to choose treatments and actions that offer the greatest good for the patient while aiming to maximize benefits and minimize harm, such as relieving pain, supporting recovery, and advocating for needed resources.

Fidelity is about keeping promises and maintaining trust, nonmaleficence is the obligation to do no harm, and confidentiality focuses on protecting the patient’s privacy. While these are important duties in clinical practice, beneficence specifically centers on actively promoting the patient’s well-being, making it the best fit for this question.