Gail Geller, ScD, MHS and Paul A. Watkins, MD, PhD
Six cohorts of first-year medical students have been shown to have negative attitudes about obesity that are consistent over time. Attitudes can be improved, however, by using popular media and an ethics framework to discuss personal experiences and beliefs about obesity.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E948-959. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.948.
Physicians need better education in nutrition science. Referring patients to nutrition experts for dietary counseling would motivate food availability and intake assessment as routine. Good clinical counseling considers patients' cultural traditions and environmental sustainability as key ethical values.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(10):E994-1000. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.994.
A lack of consensus guidelines or a belief that current evidence does not support such guidelines might be justified if a clinician expresses a commitment to patient-centered care and shared decision making.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(11):E1007-1016. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1007.
Parents’ false beliefs can be engaged respectfully to motivate deliberations about shared values and goals, but refusal of clinically indicated treatment could warrant reporting.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(11):E1017-1024. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1017.
Using crowdsourced information in health professions education can help motivate critical appraisal, question asking, and evidence evaluation skill development, especially among “digital natives.”
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(11):E1033-1040. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1033.
Stephanie L. Samuels, MD and Wilma C. Rossi, MD, MBE
When a parent resists a physician's recommendation for a pediatric patient, physician-parent partnering can promote the patient's best interest and help encourage lifestyle changes.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(12):E1126-1132. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1126