Research is often conducted without the knowledge or consent of those whose tissues are banked and poses possible harms to social groups if information about a few members is unscientifically applied to all.
The legal definition of a patient and the corresponding duties of the physician have been debated in state courts for over a century, and many aspects of the question are still unresolved.
Physicians working in close-knit communities, whether small towns or urban neighborhoods, have to manage relationships with people who may be simultaneously patients and neighbors, friends, and business associates.
Art therapy helps trafficking survivors deal with trauma, but anti-trafficking advocates who exhibit survivors’ artwork must guard against re-exploitation.
AMA J Ethics. 2017;19(1):98-106. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2017.19.1.imhl1-1701.