Hydration at the end of life may be much less beneficial than generally assumed, but the emotional significance of nourishment to caregiving should not be underestimated.
When serving an ethnically diverse population, it is imperative that physicians have an understanding of a patients' cultural background and attitudes towards health, nutrition and personal care.
Physicians need to help surrogate decision makers to make treatment and end-of-life decisions for those with severe neurological damage by proving a realistic prognosis and maintain strong lines of communication.
Derrel Zeno, Coreen Domingo, Anh Tran, Frank Martin, Kimberly O'Malley, Paul Haidet, Richard Street, and Carol Ashton
Community education about how patients can best communicate with their physicians has been successful in various communities, particularly when working with an ethnically diverse patient population.
The AMA's Code of Medical Ethics' opinion on the use of databanks in genomic research requires informed consent by groups and individuals who are subjects of research.
An ethical case concerns a 16-year-old girl suffering from systemic scleroderma with a poor prognosis and her father's cultural beliefs, which do not allow for discussions about end-of-life care.