AMA Journal of Ethics

For some patients whose survival is extended by disease-modifying interventions, little guidance about clinical and ethical complexities exist.

Differentiating between best palliative care options and the curative and palliative potential of surgery is key to developing dual intentional clarity.

Word usage and intentional clarity will influence how patients feel about that Whipple pancreaticoduodenectomy surgery.

A surgeon’s duty is to identify goals of care, including those about quality of life, from a patient’s perspective and to consider how to achieve them.

Clinician-family communication in surgical intensive care units should focus on reducing value incongruence and nonbeneficial operations.

A history of device oversight by the US Food and Drug Administration traces regulatory changes in response to injuries caused by Dalkon Shield intrauterine devices.

Editorial fellow Dr Ariel Wampler describes what few know about material and device regulation, and Dr Adriane Fugh-Berman explains why we should ask more questions about device representatives’ intraoperative roles during implantations.

Lack of training and lack of knowledge can adversely influence a patient’s clinical outcomes.

If the safe-and-effective standard for judging devices’ potential as therapy or enhancement is inadequate, one might wonder whether BCI regulation should be overseen by the FDA.

Heightened caution, improved physician and patient communication, and equitable access are key priorities.