Medical Ethics Advisor
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Ethicists Often Called to Resolve Conflicts Over Aggressive Care
Quality, compassionate communication with families is critical to prevent further escalation of conflict and to preserve trust in the therapeutic relationship.
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High-Intensity End-of-Life Care Remains the Default at Hospitals
Ethicists can help by assisting in developing hospital policies and crafting ethics committees in a way that does not pose unnecessary bureaucratic challenges or prevent physicians from acting in the patient’s best interest.
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Emergency Physicians Rarely Bill for Advance Care Planning
Clinicians should be aware of the opportunity to provide this important service to patients – while also receiving appropriate compensation.
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Multidisciplinary Initiative Leads to More Referrals, Donors, and Transplanted Organs
Staff training and more visible public awareness helped a Georgia hospital make tremendous improvements.
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For Some Ethics Programs, ‘Tele-ethics’ Is Routine
Sustainable development of virtual consultation platforms, funding, training of ethics consultants, and visibility of virtual clinical ethics consultation are priorities.
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Real-Life Experience Allows Researchers to Obtain Ethical Consent
Research staff may have secured a signed consent form from a study participant, but did they obtain that consent ethically? People considering whether to join a clinical trial may not fully understand the procedures involved, risks and benefits, confidentiality issues, or even that participation is voluntary, depending on how the research is presented.
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Community Members Help Train Research Staff
At Tufts Clinical and Translational Science Institute, research staff learn how to provide informed consent by working with community members acting as simulated prospective study participants in role-playing exercises. More than 40 community members, researchers, patients and families, and healthcare providers offer feedback and help develop training.
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Was Resident Involved in Surgery? Some Patients Are Not Informed
Further efforts are required to improve communication and education regarding resident involvement in surgery, and address patient concerns and preferences more effectively to protect the physician-patient relationship.
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Viewing Social Media Posts About Ongoing Care Could Harm Patient-Physician Relationship
Clinicians might be motivated to understand the patient’s home life better, to see how the healthcare team is portrayed, or just simple curiosity. Regardless, the clinician’s goals in viewing the content likely can be better achieved by speaking directly with the patient or family.
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Ethical Discharge Planning for Victims of Violence
Decision-making in these cases always is going to be somewhat subjective. Physicians must rely on clinical judgment, along with available resources and information. What is important is to make the decision using an ethical framework.