Monitoring surgeons’ capacities over time are rooted in professional duties to protect patients’ safety. Aging surgeons should undergo assessments and be encouraged to stop practicing before their diminished skill becomes too risky.
AMA Journal of Ethics theme editor William R. Smith, a third-year medical student at Emory University School of Medicine and a doctoral candidate in philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, interviewed James Mohr, PhD, about how the medical profession has been regulated—and regulated itself—over the course of American history.
AMA Journal of Ethics theme editor Terri Davis, a third-year MD student at West Virginia University School of Medicine, interviewed Ranit Mishori, MD, about how to respond to incidents of suspected human trafficking in health care settings.
Plastic surgeons’ use of patient images on social media should conform to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons’ advertising and image use guidelines.
Devan Stahl, PhD, MDiv and Christian J. Vercler, MD, MA
Social and cultural influences significantly contribute to our conceptions of healthy and pathological anatomy, and surgeons play critical roles in how these influences are expressed in clinical settings and social media.
Although physicians do not have legitimate authority over patients, professional associations may have such authority over physicians, even nonmembers.
Pharmacologic interventions might help physicians overcome cognitive deficits resulting from loss of sleep while on call or help them retain more details about the patients under their care.
Physician behavior that generates a patient complaint and ultimately leads to disciplinary action is both legally and ethically problematic—violating both regulatory rules and professional codes.