Good design can help transform health care, in part because it involves drawing on a wide range of perspectives and experiences. This month, we talked with a health care designer, a patient advocate, and a physician to learn how “design thinking” can be successfully incorporated into health care systems and applications.

Scott Schweikart joins Ethics Talk to discuss his article: “AMA Code of Medical Ethics’ Opinions Related to Clinicians in Government.”

In the September 2014 issue on physicians as agents of social change, Dr. Audiey Kao, editor-in-chief of Virtual Mentor interviewed Dr. Rajiv Shah, administrator of the United States Agency for International Development or USAID.

Dr Robert Field and Dr Yashaswini Singh join the AMA Journal of Ethics Grand Rounds series to discuss what patients and clinicians should know about private equity in health care.

Dr Mollyann Brodie talks about the about the science of polling, public opinions on COVID-19, and politically-divergent views on policy options to achieve universal health care coverage.

Matt Wuerker talks about his artistic process in creating cartoons that speak to matters of politics and policy arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The adverse health effects of climate change should be the focus of physician advocacy efforts and of conversations between physicians and their patients.

Physicians need to become more involved in the public debate regarding issues of medicine, science, and evolution.

Questions about data privacy need to be addressed when research institutions negotiate with companies developing mobile health applications. Commercial terms of use and data sharing notifications should be reviewed before use in human subject research settings.

Physicians should take part in public health advocacy to improve health care for all patients.