News
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Case Study – Matter of Quinlan
Evidence in the case included statements the patient made earlier referring to her “distaste for continuance of life by extraordinary medical procedures.” These statements were deemed by the court as remote, impersonal and lacking trial “probative weight.” The trial court refused the order to withdraw life-supporting apparatus. The father/guardian appealed.
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Case Study – Managing Pain, A Family Affair
Mrs. W is a sixty-year-old African American woman with a recent diagnosis of breast cancer with metastases to the bone and lung. Will she become addicted to the prescribed pain medication?
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Case Study – It’s Too Much – First My Daughter, and Now This
Fiona has custody of her two orphaned grandchildren and works as a housekeeper in a private home while the children are in school. Medical expenses are beyond Fiona’s budget. How can Fiona get – and pay for – healthcare?
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Case Study – “If you prick me, do I not bleed?”
Elizabeth is over 100 years old, with little cognitive decline. Her blood-thinning medication requires monthly blood draws, which are painful and distressing to Elizabeth. Is continuing the monthly blood draws the right thing to do?
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Advance Care Planning
Advance Care Planning programs build on the Center for Practical Bioethics’ legacy work
in end-of-life care, with emphasis on increasing participation by underserved communities. -
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Ethics Committee Consortium
Ethics Committee Consortium The Ethics Committee Consortium is a collaborative effort of more than 20 healthcare organizations who meet on a regular basis to: Educate themselves to “do ethics” Develop and review hospital policies Consult on complex cases arising in the organization These activities have been shown to improve patient outcomes and reduce organizational risk.… -
Case Study – I Know What You’re Thinking
An African American male patient, age forty-two, was admitted to a skilled nursing unit after surgery for head and neck cancer with lymph involvement, newly diagnosed. What is presupposed by his “life on the streets”? by his active drug use in the past?
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A Case of Clinical Ethics Consultation
Goals of care may be in conflict. Assistance requested in complex case of anoxic brain injury patient with unreliable DPOA and potential conflict regarding goals of care.
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The Case of Grace: Why Are They Doing All This?
Shortly after she retired, Grace, who has never married, sold her home and moved into Happy Valley Nursing Home where she has lived the past nine years and has now slipped into what the doctor agrees is Alzheimer’s disease. Grace started exhibiting signs of illness, which after blood tests, appears to be related to abnormal function of her spleen.
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Case Study – Good Death or Assisted Suicide?
“My body is all worn out. I’m worn out. Don’t want to do this anymore, Doc. Just stop that little gadget that shocks me and the part that keeps my heart going. I want them stopped. Yes, the pacemaker, too. A magnet will stop it, right? Just do it. Please.”
