Volume 20, Issue 3, March 2020, Page 46-50.

This is a qualitative examination of ethics consultation requests, outcomes, and ethics committee recommendations at a tertiary/quaternary pediatric hospital in the U.S. The purpose of this review of consults over an 18-year period is to identify specific trends in the types of ethical dilemmas presented in our pediatric setting, the impact of consultation and committee development on the number and type of consults provided, and any clinical features and/or challenges that emerged and contributed to the nature of ethical situations and (...) dilemmas. Furthermore, in reviewing clinical ethics consultation trends for nearly two decades, we can identify topic areas for further ethics education and training for ethics consultants, ethics committee members, and pediatric healthcare teams and professionals based on our experiences. Our study with nearly two decades of data prior to the COVID-19 pandemic can serve as groundwork for future comparisons of consultation requests and ethics support for pediatric hospitals prior to, during, and following a pandemic. (shrink)

In this mixed methods study we identify and assess ethical and pragmatic issues and dilemmas surrounding e-health technologies in the context of primary care, including what is already in the literature. We describe how primary healthcare professionals can access reliable and accurate data, improve the quality of care for patients, and lower costs while following institutional guidelines to protect patients. Using qualitative and quantitative methodologies we identify several underlying ethical and pragmatic burdens and benefits of e-health technologies. The 41 study (...) participants reported more burdens than benefits, and were generally ambivalent about their level of satisfaction with their institutions’ ehealth technologies, their general knowledge about the technologies, and whether e-health can improve team-based communication and collaboration. Participants provided recommendations to improve e-health technologies in primary care settings. (shrink)

In this case, Brian, a 42-year-old patient with decision-making capacity and a history of non-adherence to treatment, refuses to leave the hospital due to concerns about a bothersome rash on his ar...

The American Journal of Bioethics, Volume 11, Issue 12, Page 44-46, December 2011.

We expand on the article “Ethical Challenges Arising in the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Overview from the Association of Bioethics Program Directors (ABPD) Task Force” to consider the ways in which rural...