Physicians have an obligation to consider a patient’s quality of life when making treatment decisions and should consider giving patients the options of withholding or withdrawing aggressive treatment if that treatment will not restore the kind of life the patient finds meaningful.
A philosophical analysis of how physician actions and treatment goals are defined and interpreted and how understanding this process can affect the success of the clinical encounter.
Malaria, HIV and tuberculosis rage as perpetual epidemics in developing nations. Developed nations have an ethical duty and compelling socioeconomic reasons for combatting these global infectious diseases.
Allison Bickford, a science student, discusses multidrug-resistant tuberculosis epidemics in New York and Russia in the 1990s. On the verge of global eradication 20 years ago, TB is now one of the leading infectious causes of death in the world.
William Heisel, an investigative reporter with the Los Angeles Times, is interviewed about how medicine and the media can work better together to provide accurate and responsible health news to the public.
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.
Health care policy changes are needed to minimize the risk to physicians responding to public health emergencies and aid in their longer-term responsibility of protecting and promoting the nation's health.