Force feeding, unnecessary x-rays, misusing health information, and discharging unstable patients are classic dual-loyalty dilemmas reminiscent of the Holocaust.
AMA J Ethics. 2021;23(1):E38-45. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2021.38.
Volk v DeMeerleer may conflict with professional guidelines regarding physicians’ obligations to breach patient confidentiality to protect third parties.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(1):10-18. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2018.20.1.peer2-1801.
As courts continue to define the balance between a First Amendment right of free speech, the public's right to know, and protection of the private, physicians must take care to protect patient privacy in any publishing endeavor.
Argument that physicians called upon for expert testimony in court have an ethical duty to educate the jury by offering opinions based upon published, clinically based evidence and peer-reviewed medical literature.