Medical Ethics Advisor – October 1, 2010
October 1, 2010
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America's veterans have unique needs at EOL for a peaceful death
It's not unusual for soldiers who have returned from war never to discuss the war with their families or friends, creating an aura of mystery or a sense that their loved ones somehow cannot fully understand them now that they have returned to civilian life. -
MDs perspective on EOL spiritual care
Rabbi Barry M. Kinzbrunner, MD, suggests that in addressing spiritual care for their patients at the end of life, physicians often face the challenge of how to mesh the spiritual concerns with objective science a challenge that sometimes results in a "significant disconnect" with patients. -
How to partner with your faith community
Jeanne S. Twohig, MPA, senior advisor, Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life, unabashedly asserted that there is a crisis in our country as to the quality of the vision for our health care futures. -
Palliative Care Act is law in New York
A bill recently signed into law in New York state will require a patient's health care provider to provide information and counseling to that patient on palliative care, prognosis, and end-of-life options, once the patient is diagnosed with a terminal illness. -
Providers need better info on preemie outcomes
If they were better informed on the outcomes of premature infants, physicians might be more inclined to intervene more often, according to Annie Janvier, MD, PhD, FRCPC, a neonatologist and clinical ethicist practicing at St. Justine Hospital in Quebec and associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Montreal. -
Maternal obligations, rights during pregnancy
Although the law is squarely on the side of the pregnant mother in maternal-fetal conflict, the ethics should be examined to determine how one reaches that conclusion, according to Mark R. Mercurio, MD, MA, a neonatologist at the Yale-New Haven (CT) Children's Hospital and director of the Yale Pediatric Ethics Program. -
NEJM: Early palliative care has benefits
A study published in mid-August in the New England Journal of Medicine found that in patients with metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer, "early palliative care led to significant improvements in both quality of life and mood," according to the abstract.