Priorities far beyond generating morbidity or mortality data are needed to improve patients’ experiences, innovate metrics, and advance surgical palliation as a field.
AMA J Ethics. 2021; 23(10):E806-810. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2021.806.
Annette Hanson, MD, Ron Pies, MD, and Mark Komrad, MD
Authors respond to “How Should Physicians Care for Dying Patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis?” by arguing that patients’ motives for accessing death with dignity laws should be thoroughly explored and that temporarily limiting patient autonomy can promote well-being at the end of life.
AMA J Ethics. 2018; 20(11):E1107-1109. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1107.
Alexander Craig, MPhil and Elizabeth Dzeng, MD, PhD, MPH
Responding to “Added Points of Concern about Caring for Dying Patients,” authors argue that physicians’ refusal to prescribe lethal drugs in accordance with states’ death with dignity laws could damage patient-physician relationships and harm patients.
AMA J Ethics. 2018; 20(11):E1110-1112. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1110.
Sara Scarlet, MD, MPH and Elizabeth B. Dreesen, MD
Anesthesiologists regularly take breaks during operations, but surgeons do so rarely. Current literature describes the influence of breaks on attention, focus, and stamina.
AMA J Ethics. 2020; 22(4):E312-318. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2020.312.
In reports of industry-funded studies that compared the ocular hypotensive efficacy of topical prostaglandins, conclusions in the article abstracts differed from the results of the main outcome measure 62 percent of the time.
The harms of communicating autism risk can be avoided by helping families to understand risk and to distinguish between poor and good sources of scientific information, which should take families’ interests into account.
AMA J Ethics. 2015; 17(4):323-327. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2015.17.4.nlit1-1504.
The high price of cancer drugs in the US relative to European countries with universal health care raises ethical issues of access, financial burden on patients, and unsustainability of the health care system.
AMA J Ethics. 2015; 17(8):750-753. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2015.17.8.nlit1-1508.