Supporting burn patients physically, psychologically, and emotionally during their recovery can be a challenge. This month on Ethics Talk, we explore how medical teams can ensure that patients are given the holistic care they need.

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.

Dr Anna L. Westermair joins Ethics Talk to discuss her article, coauthored with Dr Manuel Trachsel: “Moral Intuitions About Futility as Prompts for Evaluating Goals in Mental Health Care.”

Lio Barnhardt joins Ethics Talk to discuss their comic: “Decision Tree Comic.”

Dr Amber R. Comer joins Ethics Talk to discuss her article, coauthored with Dr Jake Young: “Physician Engagement With Private Equity Firms.”

The decision-making capacity and autonomy of burn patients and medical paternalism is examined through the cases of Dax Cowart and Andrea Rubin.

An examination of how a doctor should counsel a pregnant woman through the ethical and medical challenges of being diagnosed with stage II cervical cancer.

Although identical twin-to-twin skin grafting has resulted in excellent survival rates in burn patients, the nature and scope of ethical decision making in monozygotic sibling skin grafting needs further examination.

Withdrawing care for cosmetic reasons in cases of severe burns is examined in light of ethical principles guiding surrogates’ and clinicians’ roles.

Medical technology presents a new ethical question in the case of a patient with a left ventricular assist device who, when informed that he has pneumonia and is ineligible for a heart transplant, asks that the LVAD be turned off.