Physicians should fully understand the ethical principles and professional standards involved in making decisions for the treatment of impaired newborns.
A mother of a prematurely born son reviews several quality-of-life research studies that highlight the disparity between self-reported quality of life and physician estimates of quality of life.
Parents' ability to make medical decisions for their children can be limited by state law if it is determined that the child's best interest is not being met.
A physician defends her position that children should only participate in clinical trials when they have child assent and the parents also have been educated about the purpose of the research when there is no direct benefit to the child.
Physicians should go beyond basic medical diagnosis and treatment to offer support to families about the gamut of social and emotional issues that are involved with caring for a severely disabled child.
Mark T. Hughes, MD, MA and Bimal H. Ashar, MD, MBA
Physicians are urged to evaluate an asymptomatic patient's request for CT screening and use the opportunity to educate the patient and determine the course of action that is in the patient's best interest.
Physicians should understand and be sensitive to all of the issues that affect patients when they prescribe the tertogenic medication isotretinoin for treatment of acne vulgaris.