The AMA Code of Medical Ethics' opinions related to decision-making capacity and competence and surrogate decision making.

Therapeutic misconception—a false belief that individuals will benefit from participating in research—can bias informed consent. Ethics consultants can help by engaging participants’ and researchers’ understandings of risks and benefits and by asking good questions about the influences of researchers’ enthusiasm.

When evaluating a 10-year-old with leukemia and chemo-induced heart failure for VAD placement, a team considers what to do.

Decision aids could help clinicians know when to request ethics consultation or re-evaluate blood product usage in a specific patient care situation.

Prognostic uncertainty about risk creates demand for ongoing communication and facilitated reflection about goals and values.

Clinician-researchers deeply invested in data gathering are still obliged to respect a patient-subject’s right to stop being in research.

Women with intellectual disabilities should not be sedated for a pap smear without their assent, and the test’s risks and benefits should be weighed.

Empathic communication skills help motivate understanding of safety, significance of harms, impact on succeeding generations, and social consequences.

Women with intellectual disabilities should not be sedated for a pap smear without their assent, and the test’s risks and benefits should be weighed.

Legal inconsistencies and variation in end-of-life options generate disparities in care for unrepresented patients.