There are fewer Black men in US medical schools today than in 1970, although their contributions are key to building medicine’s capacity to equitably promote healing.

Redefining merit can promote meaningful inclusion and express institutional leadership in addressing social justice.

From clinical, ethical, and public health standpoints, diversification is foundational to just responses to the health needs of a pluralistic nation.

COVID-19 underscores historical precedent for fear-driven responses that disregard autonomy among persons with low income who are also persons of color.

Neurophysiological sequelae of childhood trauma can express later in the lives of patients experiencing homelessness, especially during informed consent.

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

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

When surgical intervention is most appropriate, success should be defined by how well a surgical intervention aligns with a patient’s goals.

No single person should make decisions about for whom or according to which criteria palliative surgery is clinically and ethically appropriate.

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