Medical Ethics Advisor – November 1, 2016
November 1, 2016
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Conflicts on Prognosis Occur Over Half the Time Between Physicians and Surrogate Decision-Makers
Conflicts between physicians and surrogate decision-makers involving the patient’s prognosis occur more than half the time, according to a recent study.
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New Palliative Care Policy Aims to Reduce Barriers
A new palliative care policy statement from a leading heart and stroke organization aims to reduce barriers that prevent many patients from receiving palliative care. -
Provide High-Quality Ethics Education on a Limited Budget
Medical institutions didn’t always understand the importance of ethics to physician training, notes Timothy Lahey, MD, MMSc, chair of the clinical ethics committee at Lebanon, NH-based Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and associate professor at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine.
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Physicians Paid to Refer Patients: ‘Fundamental and Clear’ Ethical Violation
The nonprofit hospital system Broward Health in Florida recently agreed to pay $70 million to settle allegations that it engaged in “improper financial relationships” under laws prohibiting kickbacks for patient referrals.
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New Report Examines Ethics of Gene Drive Research
A recent report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine examines the ethics of gene drive research.
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Drastic Surge in Drug Prices: ‘Unethical and Immoral’
A new business model is emerging in which pharmaceutical companies buy the rights to a drug, then raise the price dramatically. Often, the drugs are produced by one manufacturer, with few or no alternatives.