During one 2014 Ebola epidemic, arrival of “safe burial” teams was often delayed. Some buried their loved ones themselves, which undermined containment efforts.
AMA J Ethics. 2020;22(1):E5-9. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2020.5.
Multiple pieces of reclaimed pallet wood are sculpted into a lateral cerebrum and a gradient of burned wood visually represents a crisis among health care professionals.
AMA J Ethics. 2020;22(1):E61-62. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2020.61.
How would gathering preclinical data and improving research infrastructure facilitate clearer definitions of “population vulnerability” and “risk acceptability”?
AMA J Ethics. 2020;22(1):E43-49. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2020.43.
Using the patient’s worldview to challenge his or her decision and establish a treatment plan—implying the view is shared by the physician when it is not—could be seen as manipulative and deceptive.
The U. S. health care system encourages patients to take more responsibility for their own treatment decisions and expects their doctors to cooperate in that effort. But the guidelines for exercising that responsibility remain very murky indeed.