US attitudes toward aging drive patient demands for elective medical and surgical services. Ethical physicians must make sure patients have realistic expectations.
Clinical case and commentary on how physicians should respond when confronted by medication requests from parents of children with mood and concentration disorders.
Physicians should recognize that patients’ beliefs may cause them to have non-medical explanations for their illnesses and that shared explanations should be negotiated if treatment plans are to be successful.
Two physicians present their viewpoints on the practice of plastic surgery on reality television shows and the accuracy of the information provided by these shows.
A bioethicist argues that children with Down syndrome should not be subjected to cosmetic surgery to change their appearance unless they are at the age and have the capacity to make the decision for themselves.
A plastic surgeon criticizes reality television programs that focus on plastic surgery for their less-than-realistic depictions of cosmetic procedures and the profession as a whole.
A discussion of a film that explores the effect that lack of physical touch and language has on the health of a child and how a physician can play in giving children the personal attention they may need.
The proliferation of enhancement technologies and pharmacological agents has perpetuated the view of American doctors and patients of medical care as a market commodity driven by what consumers want and are willing to pay for.