Introduction of an intervention that reduces the perceived risk of a given behavior may cause a person to increase risky behavior—this is called “risk compensation.”
Nicholas Rubashkin, MD, MA and Nicole Minckas, MSc
Because witnessing obstetric violence can cause moral distress, medical schools should prepare students to provide responsible care during abroad rotations.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(3):283-246. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2018.20.3.ecas2-1803.
Marcia C. Inhorn, PhD, MPH and Pasquale Patrizio, MD, MBE
Low-cost in vitro fertilization (LCIVF) is better than no infertility treatment in countries that prohibit adoption and third-party reproductive assistance.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(3):228-237. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2018.20.3.ecas1-1803.
A medical student has no duty to refrain from repeating a clinical instructor’s comments except for patient-revealing elements. He may, in fact, have a duty to repeat those remarks to someone who can correct the instructor.
Recommendation for induced lactation in nonbiological mothers is widespread in the medical literature. To resist offering the service for nongestating lesbian mothers bespeaks potential discrimination.
When family members request treatment, physicians should attempt to see that they get good care, preserve good relationships with them, and put neither themselves nor their relatives at risk.
Global health training offered through UCSF’s EMPOWUR program prepares ob/gyn residents to work in under-resourced communities locally as well as globally.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(3):253-260. doi:
10.1001/journalofethics.2018.20.3.medu1-1803.
Harm occurs when race is used as a proxy for characteristics stereotypically ascribed to members of a group, much as the obligatory mention of age is used to indicate the typical patient’s expected health status and vitality.
Many patients in settings where residents operate can only afford to seek care in a public hospital. The hospital, faculty, and resident surgeon must find ways to minimize the risk to those patients.