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.
AMA Journal of Ethics editor Audiey Kao, MD, PhD, interviewed Richard Pan, MD, MPH, about how, as a physician and legislator, he seeks to protect public health in light of recurrent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable infectious diseases.
AMA Journal of Ethics theme editor Emily Johnson, a fourth-year medical student at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, interviewed Susan Mizner, JD, about some merits, drawbacks, and alternatives to guardianship.
Dr Amber R. Comer joins Ethics Talk to discuss her article, coauthored with Meredith Rappaport: “Treating Patients in Non-Labor and Delivery OB/GYN Examinations and Procedures.”
Eva V. Regel joins Ethics Talk to discuss her article: “How Should Clinicians Help Homeless Trauma Survivors Make Irreversible Surgical Care Decisions?”
The ongoing anthrax vaccination case, Doe v Rumsfeld, tests whether the military can require participation in and punish refusal of a vaccination program while waiving informed consent.
