Physicians, committees, and guardians all make decisions for unrepresented patients in the US. This article considers a “tiered” approach as an alternative.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(7):E587-593. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.587.
When patients are unable to express their wishes and do not have surrogates or advance directives, which and whose values should inform decision making for them? We discuss ethical complexities of caring for unrepresented patients.
Ethical questions raised during “immersions” include scope of practice, continuity of care, and erosion of local health systems. This is a perspective of one volunteer in a related field.
AMA J Ethics. 2019;21(9):E815-822. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2019.815.