Growing Transplantable Human Organs in Livestock HMS Center for Bioethics 2021-03-25 | Growing Transplantable Human Organs in LivestockFebruary 19, 2021Currently there is a dire shortage of organs available for transplantation in the United States, leading to approximately twenty-two deaths per day among patients waiting for organs. While cell replacement therapies hold great promise for treating a variety of medical conditions, their utility for treating patients who require organ replacement is unclear. These patients need whole organs, not cells.To address this challenge, Hiro Nakauchi, professor in the Department of GeneticsInstitute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at Stanford University, and others have proposed the use of genetically engineered livestock animals to generate transplantable rejection-free human organs derived from patients' own pluripotent stem cells. This proposal builds upon Dr. Nakauchi's interspecies work involving the generation of rat pancreases in mice, which provided proof of principle that an organ derived from one species can be generated in the body of another species host from donor pluripotent stem cells.Hiromitsu Nakauchi and Insoo Hyun discuss the scientific, ethical, and policy challenges facing this remarkable strategy to alleviate the shortage of transplantable human organs.Learn more about the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics at https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu
Pediatric Bioethics Certificate Program HMS Center for Bioethics 2026-05-12 | The Pediatric Bioethics Certificate program is a new program developed and offered by the Boston Children's Hospital Center for Pediatric Bioethics and the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics.
The Ethical Implications of AI in Surgical Training and Practice HMS Center for Bioethics 2026-04-09 | This seminar examines the ethical implications of integrating #artificialintelligence into #surgicaltraining and #clinicalpractice. Panelists discuss how AI-driven tools influence surgical judgment, skill acquisition, and intraoperative decision-making. The session explores the intersections of responsibility, transparency, and equity.00:00 Introductions by Theresa Williamson, MD03:00 Presentation by Danielle Bitterman, MD09:34 Presentation by Rohaid Ali, MD13:30 Presentation by Krystle Tuaño, MD (Trigger Warning: This presentation contains graphic surgical images, including blood and open wounds.)19:58 Panelist Q&ASupport provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University. Co-organized by the Center for Bioethics and the Surgical Ethics Working Group (SEWG) at Harvard Medical School.
Protecting Whistleblowers and Fighting Fraud HMS Center for Bioethics 2026-03-31 | Whistleblowers serve the public when they expose #fraud in #government-funded #healthcare programs, leading to millions of dollars in recovered costs. Though laws protect #whistleblowers, it still takes great moral courage and leaves individuals exposed to negative consequences. In this seminar, we are joined by two experts in health care fraud to discuss fraud detection and whistleblower protection.Presenters:Taryn Vian, PhD, Professor, University of San Francisco, School of Nursing and Health ProfessionsMaya Efrati, JD, MPP, Director of Legislation and Congressional Affairs, Government Accountability ProjectModerator:Alexander Egilman, Senior Research Assistant, PORTAL, Brigham and Women's Hospital00:00 Introductions by Crystal Chang, MPH, Leah Rand, DPhil and Alexander Egilman04:56 Whistleblowing as an Anti-corruption Strategy in Health Organizations by Taryn Vian, PhD23:12 The Role of Whistleblowers in Health Policy & Bioethics by Maya Efrati, JD, MPP42:05 Panelist Q&ASupport provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University. Co-organized by the Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School, the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, and the Program on Regulation, Therapeutics, and Law (PORTAL).
2026 Bioethics & Black History: The Legacy of the Tuskegee Report HMS Center for Bioethics 2026-03-12 | The Tuskegee Report—developed by Tuskegee University’s National Center for Bioethics in Research and Health Care in collaboration with Vanderbilt University—seeks to redefine bioethics at the intersection of research with human subjects, clinical trials, medicine, and public health by centering the voices, experiences, histories and cultural identities of populations disproportionately impacted by unethical research practices and unequal care. This Black History Month conversation featured Dr. David Augustin Hodge, Sr. and Dr. T. S. Harvey, and was facilitated by Dr. Rebecca Brendel. Together, they explored how the perspectives of BIPOC populations—rooted in resilience, memory, and lived experience—must be foundational in shaping the next generation of ethical frameworks for research, medicine, and public health.Chapters00:00 Introductions and the History of the Collaboration13:35 The Current State of Health Disparities and the Need for Black Bioethics21:01 Reimagining the Belmont Report Through a Tuskegee Lens25:15 From Black Theology to Black Bioethics31:30 Global Solutions for U.S. Problems in Bioethics37:18 Rethinking ‘Wicked Problems’ in Bioethics41:43 Whose Voice Trains the Machine? AI, Bias, and Exclusion46:58 Reimagining Ethics, Access, and the Future59:16 Inspiring the Next GenerationThis event was co-organized by the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics, the National Center for Bioethics in Research and Health Care at Tuskegee University, and the Office for Culture and Community Engagement at Harvard Medical School.
2026 Moral Leadership in Medicine: The Conscience of Care: Navigating Health in the Culture Wars HMS Center for Bioethics 2026-03-12 | Pitched battles over #abortion, #pubertyblockers, and #assistedsuicide have turned American #healthcare into a legal minefield. Faced with mounting restrictions on medical practice, doctors and nurses who follow their conscience to provide standard treatments now risk being fined, fired, or even imprisoned. Meanwhile, clinicians who conscientiously deny evidence-based care are shielded without condition from any such consequences. Dov Fox, DPhil, JD, LLM argues that the lopsided law of medical conscience selectively burdens providers, drives vulnerable patients underground, and impoverishes the dynamic pluralism of medicine by ceding the moral vocabulary of conscience to refusers alone.This presentation lays bare the broken system of medical conscience and sets out to fix it. In his latest book, "The Conscience of Care: The Conscience of Care: Navigating Health in the Culture Wars" (Harvard University Press, 2026), Fox canvases a landscape of contested services that include #IVF, #IUDs, #opioids, #psychedelics, #organtransplants, and #advancedirectives. He develops practical reforms that rebalance conscience protection by introducing measured safeguards for providers and scaling back the categorical refuge afforded to refusers. Fox presents a vision of medicine that reclaims the lost promise of conscience to bridge social divides on matters of life and death, impairment and identity.Chapters00:00 Introductions03:06 Lecture by Dov Fox, DPhil, JD, LLMHosted by the Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School. Co-organized by the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Master of Science in Bioethics Alumni Panel | Healthcare Professions | January 28, 2026 HMS Center for Bioethics 2026-01-29 | Listen to alumni from the Master of Science in Bioethics Program at Harvard Medical School discuss how their experiences in the program altered their healthcare related careers.
Virtual Therapy? Navigating AI-Powered Interventions for Mental Health HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-12-19 | #GenerativeAI has the potential to expand access to #mentalhealth support and treatment. From apps to bots to "#therapy" modes within larger systems, anyone with a smartphone in their palm now has access to countless tools that implicitly and/or explicitly promise to improve mental health. Alongside this rapid technological expansion and innovation, however, accounts of serious negative outcomes associated with these AI innovations, including user suicide, are emerging. In addition, our nation's youth may be particularly susceptible to the risks – known and unknown – of these AI-powered tools and systems. In this seminar, three experts join HMS Center for Bioethics Director Rebecca Brendel MD, JD in elucidating: what we know (and don't know) about the benefits and harms of AI-powered interventions for mental health; core ethical concerns and guiding principles for the future; and possible paths forward to enable innovation and access while also advancing benefit and safety.Chapters0:00 Today's Topic and Intro to Dr. Wei by Rebecca Brendel, MD, JD3:53 Presentation by Marlynn Wei, MD, JD32:18 Intro to Dr. Clark by Rebecca Brendel, MD, JD33:20 Presentation by Andrew Clark, MD59:18 Panel Discussion Moderated by Rebecca Brendel, MD, JDHosted by the Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
HMS Master of Science in Bioethics | Alumni Panel | December 3, 2025 HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-12-05 | Listen to two alumni discuss why they joined the Master of Science in Bioethics program at HMS, and how they have used what they learned. #bioethics
HMS Master of Science in Bioethics | Student Panel: In-person, Full-time Program | November 12, 2025 HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-11-12 | Listen to current students in the full-time in-person program discuss why they joined the Master of Science in Bioethics program at HMS, their experiences in the program so far, and how they plan to use their degree after. #bioethics
HMS Master of Science in Bioethics | Information Session October 29, 2025 HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-10-31 | Listen to Center for Bioethics director, Dr. Rebecca Brendel, give an overview of the Master of Science in Bioethics program at HMS. More info here: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/education/master-science-bioethics#bioethics #ethics #graduateprogram
If Theres Vapor, Theres Fire: Regulation and Use of E-Cigarettes HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-09-29 | The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates tobacco products, including e-cigarettes or vapes. In recent years, there have been debates about whether e-cigarettes should be promoted as safer than combustible tobacco and what role the FDA or other policymakers should take in limiting e-cigarette use among youth. In this seminar, we will consider opportunities and barriers to policies that reduce tobacco use and mitigate disparities among socioeconomic groups.Chapters0:00 Intros and Today's Topic5:08 Presentation by Daniel Aaron, JD, MD27:10 Presentation by Abigail Friedman, PhD39:56 Panel Discussion Moderated by C. Joseph Daval, JDCo-sponsored by the Center for Bioethics at Harvard Medical School, the Program On Regulation, Therapeutics And Law (PORTAL) at Brigham & Women's Hospital, and the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology & Bioethics at Harvard Law School. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
2025 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference: Implementation of AI in Surgery: Ethical Considerations HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-09-12 | This is session 4 of the conference, recorded on April 28, 2025, moderated by Jonathan Marron, MD, MPH, HEC-C. This session will consider the ethical challenges of incorporating #AI in the practice of #surgery including: patient #privacy, #data security, and ownership concerns (legal and ethical); the impact of over-reliance on AI on the art and science of #medicine, especially the cognitive training and development of future surgeons; and ethical concerns with specific applications that are currently being introduced in patient care.Presentations include:- AI and Patient Privacy, Data Security and Ownership by Francis X. Shen, JD, PhD- Over-Reliance on AI and Loss of the Art of Medicine by Theresa Williamson, MD, MPH- Reclaiming Voice with AI and Other Applications by Rohaid Ali, MD
2025 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference: Ethical Challenges in Global Health and Surgery HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-09-12 | This is session 3 of the conference, recorded on April 21, 2025, moderated by John E. Mayer Jr., MD. The lack of access to surgical care is worst in low- and middle-income countries. This session will consider the ethical considerations that must be taken into account when determining global #surgery priorities, how the loss of trained #physicians to more wealthy countries can affect efforts to improve surgery in low- and middle-income countries, and whether and under what circumstances is genital cutting or surgery ethically permissible in #children.Presentations include:- Global Surgery Priorities: Ethical Considerations by Rashi Jhunjhunwala, MD, MA- Local Brain Drain or Global Progress? Exploring the Impact of Outmigration on Surgical Advancements in LMICs by Barnabas Alayande, MBBS, PgDTH, MBA- The Ethics of Child Genital Modification: When is Cutting or Surgery Permissible by Brian D. Earp, PhD
2025 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference: Teaching Bioethics HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-09-12 | This is session 1 of the conference, recorded on April 7, 2025, moderated by J. Wesley Boyd, MD, PhD. This session discusses important trends in the teaching of #bioethics including: how clinical case studies can be used in innovative ways in the #classroom; how ethical theories and frameworks that are learned in the classroom can be applied in clinical settings; and how #AI is radically changing biomedical education.Presentations include:- Using Ethical Theories and Frameworks in the Classroom and in the Clinic by Kelsey N. Berry, PhD- AI in Biomedical Education by Adam Rodman, MD, MPH
2025 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference: Controversies in Transplant Ethics HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-09-12 | This is session 2 of the conference, recorded on April 14, 2025, moderated by Richard Whyte, MD. This session discusses whether normothermic regional perfusion, which is increasingly being used in #donors after circulatory determination of #death, violates the dead donor rule and is thereby unethical; considers whether uterine #transplantation is ethically acceptable in women with uterine infertility; and analyzes the guidelines for the conduct and oversight of #research on brain-dead and recently deceased subjects.Presentations include:- Normothermic Regional Perfusion and the Dead Donor Rule by Keren Ladin, PhD, MSc- Ethical Considerations in Uterus Transplantation by Louise P. King, MD, JD- Ethics of Brain-Dead Donors as Experimental Xenograft Recipients by Douglas W. Hanto, MD, PhD, MBE
Online Fellowship Certificate Program | Information Session June 12, 2025 HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-06-12 | Listen to Dr. Thos Cochrane, MD, MBA discuss the Online Fellowship Certificate Program at Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics. More info here: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/education/online-fellowship-certificate-programChapters0:50 What is the Online Fellowship Certificate Program?2:49 Fellowship Directors5:20 Center Leadership6:24 Who is the Program Intended For?7:56 Program Topics10:06 Why Choose the Online Fellowship Certificate Program?11:04 Admissions Process#fellowship #careerdevelopment #bioethics #ethics #workingprofessionals #onlineprogram
Professionalism and the Future of Medicine HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-03-24 | Professionalism is the basis of medicine’s contract with society. However, increasingly, genuine medical professionalism seems to have come under threat as market and bureaucratic forces shape the practice and delivery of medicine. How has the health care organization contributed to this environment, and how should the #health care organization operate in relation to medical professionalism? What mechanisms might facilitate organizational accountability to professionalism? Join us for a seminar and discussion exploring concepts of organizational #professionalism and the future of #medicine.Chapters0:00 Intros and Today's Topic5:16 Presentation by Frederic W. Hafferty, PhD50:28 Q&A with Edward M. Hundert, MD and Lauren Taylor, PhD
Clinical Ethics Conversations: Reasonable Variability or Unethical Inequity? HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-03-17 | #Hospital policies have a fundamental role in the care of #patients, yet significant variability exists across hospitals in core patient-facing #policies. In this Clinical Ethics Conversation, we will learn from #clinical #ethics leaders about variations in policy across their institutions (using policies addressing potentially inappropriate/non-beneficial treatment as a case example) and examine ethical arguments that support or oppose such variability.Chapters0:00 Intros and Today's Topic7:58 About David Sontag JD, MBE, HEC-C8:44 Presentation by David Sontag JD, MBE, HEC-C20:57 About Lindsay Semler DNP, RN, CCRN, HEC-C21:32 Presentation by Lindsay Semler DNP, RN, CCRN, HEC-C31:56 About Brian Cummings, MD32:30 Presentation by Brian Cummings, MD44:30 About Kayte Spector-Bagdady JD, MBE, HEC-C45:28 Presentation by Kayte Spector-Bagdady JD, MBE, HEC-C59:43 Q&A
The Carceral Hospital: Race, Birth, and Imagining a Different World of Health HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-02-24 | Along with various social determinants, the #hospital as an institution must also be examined for its role in poor Black infant and maternal #health outcomes worldwide. With the US and the African diaspora as her dual focus, Mali Collins, PhD argues hospitals must be held accountable for their demand for the literal and financial #incarceration of Black mothers who cannot afford safe and attentive #healthcare in our present day. With a reproductive justice orientation to bioethical practice, Collins invites audience members to imagine a future where hospital-accrued debt is no longer a factor in poor Black maternal health outcomes. Mali Collins, PhD is an Assistant Professor of African American Studies at American University in Washington DC, and a Birth and Postpartum Doula at the Womb Room.Chapters0:00 Intro2:42 Lecture39:06 Q&A
Private Equity in Health Care and Policy Options for Protecting Patients HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-02-21 | Private equity ownership of medical practices in the last decade has increased more than sixfold and takeovers are often associated with worse patient outcomes, including mortality, and increased prices. Current regulatory options appear insufficient to address these concerns. This session examined trends in #privateequity in #healthcare markets, effects on care, and #law and regulatory solutions. Presentations by Zirui Song, MD, PhD and Erin C. Fuse Brown. Moderated by Hussain Lalani, MD, MPH, MSc. Co-hosted by Leah Rand, DPhil and Aaron Seth Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH. Co-sponsored by the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics, the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, and the Program On Regulation, Therapeutics And Law (PORTAL).Chapters0:00 Intro4:42 Presentation by Zirui Song, MD, PhD25:40 Presentation by Erin C. Fuse Brown52:09 Q&A
MBE Student Panel on February 12, 2025: Master of Science in Bioethics at Harvard Medical School HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-02-19 | Hear from a few of our current students in their first or second years of our fully online MBE program.
2024 George W. Gay Lecture in Medical Ethics: Bioethics in the Age of Artificial Intelligence HMS Center for Bioethics 2025-01-10 | #ArtificialIntelligence is rapidly re-shapeing the landscape of #healthcare and biomedical research, prompting #bioethics to evolve in response. In this talk, Effy Vayena, PhD examines how AI introduces novel ethical challenges, urging bioethicists to broaden their scope of inquiry and adapt their methodological approaches. By exploring the shifts that AI brings in bioethics, she charts the opportunities that lie ahead for the field of bioethics and in return the role it can play in guiding responsible innovation and, ultimately, more compassionate and equitable healthcare.Effy Vayena, PhD, is Professor of Bioethics and Associate Vice President for Digital Transformation and Governance at ETH Zurich, Switzerland. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University. This event was hosted on Thursday, November 21, 2024 at Harvard Medical School in the TMEC Amphitheater. Learn more about the George W. Gay Lecture: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/programming/annual-lectures/gay-lecture
Improving Im/migrant Health Care Access: Moving in the Right Direction? HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-12-18 | Im/migrants are diverse populations with different health needs who often face barriers to being healthy and accessing health care in the US. This session will explore patterns of #healthcare use, what works well to provide care and improve access, and future policy solutions to promote #healthequity. Presentations by Arturo Vargas Bustamante, PhD, MPP and Sarah Kimball, MD. Moderated by Maple Goh, MBChB, MPH. Co-hosted by Leah Rand, DPhil and Aaron Seth Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH. Co-sponsored by the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics, the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, and the Program On Regulation, Therapeutics And Law (PORTAL).Chapters0:00 Intro3:20 Presentation by Arturo Vargas Bustamante, PhD, MPP24:18 Presentation by Sarah Kimball, MD46:34 Q&A
Clinical Ethics Conversations: Can AI Act as a Clinical Ethicist? Should It? HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-12-17 | The potential opportunities for #artificialintelligence in healthcare are immense, with it already being deployed in clinical, research, and administrative areas of #healthcare. However, may concerns exist about AI in these settings, including those related to bias, uncertainty, and trust. With data emerging that AI can be taught #empathy and moral reasoning, might there be a role for AI in #clinicalethics practice? This session explored these questions, based on current data and ongoing research regarding the possibilities and challenges related to AI and LLMs in healthcare. Presentations by Spencer Hey, PhD and Andrew Hantel, MD. Hosted by Jonathan Marron, MD, MPH, HEC-C. Sponsored by Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics.0:00 Intro10:47 Presentation by Spencer Hey, PhD33:44 Presentation by Andrew Hantel, MD1:02:44 Q&A
MBE Alumni Panel on December 11, 2024: Master of Science in Bioethics at Harvard Medical School HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-12-12 | Hear from a few of our many accomplished Master of Science in Bioethics #alumni as they share their experiences and how the MBE program changed their careers. For more on our program, visit our website: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/education/master-science-bioethicsApplications for the in-person program are due January 15, 2025.Applications for the Online program are due March 5, 2025.
General Info Session on November 13, 2024: Master of Science in Bioethics at Harvard Medical School HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-11-14 | The education team at the Center for Bioethics discussed available course formats, curriculum, the capstone experience, and admissions tips. Find out more about the program on our website here: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/education/master-science-bioethicsApplications for the in-person program are due January 15, 2025.Applications for the Online program are due March 5, 2025.
Moral Leadership in Medicine: The Short History and Tenuous Future of Professionalism in Medicine HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-10-24 | The concept of #professionalism in #healthcare is both newer and more fragile than many assume. The history, strengths, risks, and alternatives to professionalism should be understood if we hope to create a future in which health professionals work well together in teams to effectively and ethically serve our patients and communities. This lecture was provided by Matthew Wynia, MD, MPH, FACP, professor of medicine and public health at the University of Colorado and director of the CU Center for Bioethics and Humanities. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Ask a Health Care Executive HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-10-04 | How can #ethics help health care organizational leaders navigate emerging challenges in the practice and business of #medicine? In this fireside chat with Dr. Sachin Jain, President and CEO of SCAN Group and Health Plan, we explored the trends and challenges that face health care organizations today and the role that ethics and ethics leaders can play in charting a course forward. We explored what it means (and takes) for organizational leaders to adopt an ethics lens in their decision making, critically reexamined dominant frameworks for setting organizational strategy such as 'no margin, no mission', and interrogated the moral #leadership crisis and possible solutions in #healthcare. Panelists include Sachin H. Jain, MD, MBA and Lauren Taylor, PhD, with Kelsey Berry, PhD as moderator. Our Ethics of Health Systems and Institutions Seminar leaders are Kelsey Berry, PhD and Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Commercialization of Traditional Knowledge and Justice for Communities HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-10-04 | Traditional knowledge, often from #indigenous communities, has sometimes been patented and commercialized, raising concerns about who benefits from knowledge, patentability, and the co-option of communities' knowledge or practices, sometimes referred to as "#biopiracy." In May 2024, the WIPO issued new guidelines on genetic resources and traditional knowledge and a new treaty that could be the start of new international trade and intellectual property protections for traditional knowledge. In this seminar, we explored the ethics of #commercialization and #justice for communities that share their knowledge.Presentations by Angela R. Riley, JD and Nicole Redvers, ND, MPH, DPhilc, with Daniel Eisenkraft Klein, PhD as moderator. Our Health Policy Seminar leaders are Leah Rand, DPhil and Aaron Seth Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Online Fellowship Certificate Program Information Session HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-08-07 | Program director, Thos. Cochrane MD, MBA, outlines the new Online Fellowship Certificate Program at Harvard Medical School's Center for Bioethics.See more details and apply here: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/education/online-fellowship-certificate-program
Market Medicine? How Money is Changing the Experience of Medicine and What We Can Do About It HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-07-15 | Some observers have argued that present day America is not just a society making use of a market #economy, but in fact a “market society” where all individuals and institutions are forced into cutthroat competition for #profits and survival. This situation, if real, will inevitably shape #healthcare organizations, and within them, interpersonal interactions like those between #patients and their #caregivers. These interactions might be forced into transactional, impersonal modes that lead to widespread experiences of moral injury, burnout, loneliness and distrust. And indeed, these experiences seem to be on the rise amongst medical practitioners. Some have talked about the moral crisis of American doctors. This panel examined the crisis through theoretical, clinical and ethical lenses, asking how it is manifesting, what is causing it, and what we might do about it.Discussants included Ian Corbin, PhD, MA, Lydia Dugdale, MD, MAR, Jonathan Cahill, PhD, MA, and Omar B. Lateef, DO. Consortium organized by Kelsey Berry, PhD. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Organizational Dilemmas in Integrating Medical and Social Care to Improve Health Equity HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-07-15 | Addressing #healthinequity generally requires attention to the most marginalized patients, whose #health is often undermined by social, legal and financial challenges. In response, many #healthcare delivery organizations have begun to collect data about health-related social needs and build organizational capacity to address these needs, either “in-house” or through partnerships with community-based organizations. This gives rise to challenging ethical questions: How do we weigh the potential benefits and harms of screening for social needs? And what responsibilities do health care delivery organizations have once they have health-related social need information? How should health care delivery organizations allocate their resources between addressing specific patient needs versus thinking more broadly about community-level social determinants? The panel weighed in on each of these normative questions based on their experiences as #physicians, #researchers and change agents.Presentation by Monica E. Peek, MD, MPH, MSc, with Marshall Chin, MD, MPH and Laura Gottlieb, MD, MPH as discussants, with Lauren A Taylor, PhD, MDiv moderating. Consortium organized by Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Reflections from an Imperfect Art: Jazz, Health Justice, and the Moral Practice of Medicine HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-04-08 | As a distinctively original African-American art form, #jazz was born out of contexts marred by racial and gender oppression and economic exploitation. Many of the motifs of this genre of music can serve as guiding metaphors for the ethical life. This talk explored the relationship of jazz, understood as more than a music, to the moral practice of #medicine for the promotion of #health #justice.This event was held on the Harvard Medical School campus on February 8, 2024. In honor of Black History Month, Harvard Medical School and Tuskegee University partner annually to host events examining the history of racism in health care, its impact on Black individuals and the Black community, and gathering solutions for a healthier future from experts and thought leaders in history, health policy and law, social justice, and public health and medicine. This series is co-sponsored by the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics, the Harvard Medical School Office for Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Partnership, and the National Center for Bioethics in Research and Health Care at Tuskegee University.
Promoting Equity in Digital Health: Challenges and Approaches for Healthcare Organizations HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-03-22 | Many patient-facing digital health tools – such as #telehealth visits, patient portals, or remote patient monitoring – are associated with improved patient experience, reduced #healthcare costs, and – for certain tools in certain conditions – improved health outcomes. However, not all patient populations experience these benefits and evidence suggests that increasing use of digital tools, when not thoughtfully introduced, may worsen #health inequities.Join our expert panel to explore how organizations are grappling with the desire to offer innovative digital health solutions while also ensuring that these solutions are accessible, designed in a nondiscriminatory way, protective of #privacy, and otherwise beneficial to those who have the greatest need for increased access to healthcare, whether because of race, ethnicity, education, geography, economic status, linguistic preference, immigration status or other factors.Presentations by Courtney R. Lyles, PhD, Deepti Pandita, MD, FACP, FAMIA, and Safiya I. Richardson, MD, MPH, with Francis X. Shen, JD, PhD as discussant, and Elaine Khoong, MD, MS as moderator. Consortium organized by Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Triage for ECMO and Other Critical Care Resources in Widespread Equipment Shortage HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-02-27 | How can #hospitals and health systems prepare for ethical and practical challenges presented by widespread shortages of certain critical care resources? When life-threatening shortages may arise with little notice, how can #organizations quickly build multi-stakeholder support for a fair and workable approach to triage and resource-sharing? Is there a role for inter-institutional collaboration in short- or longer-term planning?Many institutions recently faced an impending shortage of ECMO circuits due to a scarcity of available oxygenators. With a few weeks’ notice and with the sponsorship of hospital leaders, Seattle Children’s Hospital used a broad existing triage algorithm developed through regional disaster response refined during #COVID19 as a basis for creating a similar algorithm and triage process specifically for ECMO allocation. ECMO physicians from the neonatal, pediatric and cardiac ICUs, surgeons, organizational ethics, the center for health equity and diversity, hospital leadership and risk management met frequently to develop and finalize a standard operating procedure. Panelists discussed challenges and lessons learned in that process, in light of anticipated needs for similar efforts as other shortages occur.Presentations by Emily R. Berkman, MD, MA, Douglas S. Diekema MD, MPH, and Mithya Lewis-Newby, MD, MPH, with Matthew Wynia, MD, MPH, FACP as discussant, and Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C as moderator. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Alumni Panel 2024 | Master of Science in Bioethics at Harvard Medical School HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-02-13 | Hear from a few of our many accomplished Master of Science in Bioethics #alumni as they share their experiences and how the MBE program changed their careers. For more on our program, visit our website: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/education/master-science-bioethics
Public Engagement Regarding Patient-facing Hospital Policy: Ethics, Challenges, and Opportunities HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-01-08 | There have been many calls for health care systems to engage and listen to community voices, particularly when making consequential policy decisions about patient care. Such decisions may range from policies for rationing scarce COVID-19 interventions to requiring masking in hospitals in the post-pandemic era, and beyond, to reproductive and transgender care policies in a post-Dobbs public landscape. But what does it really mean to engage the public in deliberation on hospital policies? What are the benefits and hazards of such engagement? What would hospital leaders and community members need to put such a decision-making model into place? And how can ethics leaders facilitate this work?At this special joint Clinical Ethics + Organizational Ethics Consortium, we explored the ethics, challenges of, and opportunities for public engagement regarding patient-facing policy. We discussed first what public engagement is, both in theory and in practice, and then perspectives from a local hospital leader and patient advocate on the promise and challenges of publicly-engaged deliberation to help inform organizational decision-making. Through facilitated discussion amongst speakers and attendees, we explored a practical approach for this model's potential application in health care systems.Panelists included Erika Blacksher, PhD, Julius Yang, MD, PhD, and Basel Tarab, MD, MBE, MHA.M Moderated by Jonathan Marron, MD, MPH, HEC-C and Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C. Consortia co-organizers included Leanne Homan, RN, BSN, MBE, HEC-C and Kelsey N. Berry, PhD. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Telehealth: Zooming Into the Future of Medicine HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-01-05 | Telehealth use has rapidly increased over the last five years. It promises the potential to reduce health disparities in hard-to-reach populations and ease of access to care. However, #telehealth also raises questions about patient #confidentiality, informed #consent, and clinicians’ scope of practice. This session discussed the growth in telehealth use, opportunities to meet more health needs, and the policy and #ethics questions that arise from this recent entrant into health care provision. Presenters include: Ateev Mehrotra, MD, MPH and Smita Das, MD, PhD, MPH. Moderated by Ameet Sarpatwari, PhD, JD. Co-organized by Aaron Seth Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH and Leah Rand, DPhil. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Mental Health at a Crossroads: What is the Role of Organized Psychiatry? HMS Center for Bioethics 2024-01-05 | A national mental health crisis, exacerbated by the isolation, interruptions, and uncertainties of the pandemic, is overwhelming stressed health care delivery systems and leaving many without needed care. Psychiatry is the branch of medicine specifically trained to respond to such crises, and yet psychiatry too faces challenges of limited workforce, financing disparity, and continually evolving science. How, then, can psychiatry situate itself within treatment systems to meet its responsibilities to the population? And what is the role of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), the world's largest psychiatric organization, in setting the norms and targets of the profession to meet today's and future mental health crises? At this consortium, leaders from the APA discussed the future of psychiatry and the work the APA has done over the past year to revisit norms and priorities for the profession against a backdrop of crisis and change. Together, we considered how a professional association plays a powerful organizing role in the health care system and its ability to ethically serve the public. Panelists include: Rebecca Weintraub Brendel, MD, JD, Charles Dike, FRCPsych, MBChB, MPH, and Robert L. Trestman, PhD, MD. Moderated by Kelsey N. Berry, PhD. Co-organized by Kelsey N. Berry, PhD and Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Master of Science in Bioethics Program | International Student Panel HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-12-20 | Hear from four current international students about their experiences in the program. Topics covered include adapting to a US classroom, student and faculty dynamics, the capstone experience, student life/networking, and housing.
Veterans Health Administration and Pharmacy Management: Lessons for Medicare and Markets HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-11-14 | The VA Pharmacy Benefits Management Services oversee the prescription drug benefit for the VA, which serves over 9 million veterans. A key component is a national formulary that determines which drugs are included in the benefit based on access and contracting to control VA spending. The national formulary promotes uniform benefits for all enrollees, appropriate prescribing, and reduced costs. This year, another federal health service, Medicare, will begin negotiating drug prices for the first time. In this session, experts on pharmaceutical markets and the VA formulary will discuss what can be learned from the VA program and how to ensure appropriate access to drugs while balancing cost concerns.Presenters include: Inmaculada (Inma) Hernandez, PharmD, PhD, and Chester (Bernie) B. Good, MD, MPH. Moderated by Leah Rand, DPhil. Co-organized by Aaron Seth Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH and Leah Rand, DPhil. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
2023 George W. Gay Lecture in Medical Ethics: The Ethical Conundrum of Medicalizing Self-control HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-11-14 | Medical schools, the physicians they graduate, and public health officials are appropriately concerned with human behaviors that affect risk of morbidity and mortality. Unfortunately, to a great extent, medical education and medical practice remain mired in folk psychological rather than scientific understandings of decision-making and self-control. Thus, views of people suffering from such conditions as drug addiction, obesity, and conditions that impair executive function often lurch between the extremes of moral opprobrium and fatalistic biological determinism. Failure to engage wisely with our advancing, albeit still incomplete scientific understanding of behavioral control is not only damaging to public health, but represents an ethical failure on the part of medical educators and practitioners that contribute to distress and poor outcomes for patients.The 2023 lecturer was Steven E. Hyman, MD, a Core Institute Member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and Director of the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research. He is also Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor and Harald McPike Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology.Learn more about the George W. Gay Lecture: https://bioethics.hms.harvard.edu/events/lectures/gay-lecture#HMSBioethics
The Indian Health Service: Improving Health Equity or Failing to Meet Obligations? HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-11-13 | The Indian Health Service (IHS) is the federal agency responsible for delivering health care services to American Indians and Alaskan Natives. Despite treaty obligations, the IHS has been chronically underfunded, even in comparison to other federal health programs, and health disparities persist. This session considered the complex laws governing Tribal and federal health programs, which were highlighted during COVID-19 public health actions, efforts to improve Tribal health care, and what can be done in the future for the federal government to meet its obligations. Presenters include: Tom Sequist, MD, MPH and Aila Hoss, JD. Moderated by Tony V. Pham, MD. Co-organized by Aaron Seth Kesselheim, MD, JD, MPH and Leah Rand, DPhil. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
How Non-medical Factors Affect Surgical Decision-making and Patient Care HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-10-24 | This was session 4 of 4 in the 2023 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference.
Ethical Implications of New Biomedical Technologies in Neuroscience HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-10-24 | This was session 3 of 4 in the 2023 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference. Rapidly advancing neurotechnologies have improved the management of neurological and psychiatric conditions, revealed new insights about cognition, and have been used by hospitals, employers, schools, and governments. Surgeons play a key role in the development, use, and patient informed consent for implantable devices. In this session we addressed these and key ethical issues that arise for surgeons in the burgeoning field of neurotechnology.
Challenges to the Patient-Surgeon Relationship HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-10-24 | This was session 2 of 4 in the 2023 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference. There are various types of patient-surgeon relationships that have been described, some more desirable than others. In this session we discussed how the lack of a diverse workforce can impact the patient-surgeon relationship and healthcare outcomes, explored the limits of healthcare providers duty-to-care, and discussed the impact of the Dobbs decision on the patient-physician relationship.
Ethical Considerations in Pig-to-Human Xenotransplants HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-10-20 | This was session 1 of 4 in the 2023 Harvard Surgical Ethics Conference. This session discussed the risks of spreading animal pathogens into humans and under what circumstances are these risks low enough to proceed, unique problems in the protection of human research subjects because of unforeseen risks and benefits, and the ethical concerns regarding animal welfare protection in light of the use of genetically modified animals as an organ source.
Can an Institutional Commitment to Equity Help Restore the Moral Core of Medicine? HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-10-19 | Physician moral stress and burnout have emerged as major challenges for US health care, particularly as physicians struggle to prevent patients from falling through the cracks of the complicated, and often opaque, health and hospital systems within which they work. Can hospitals help physicians recapture the moral core of their practice through a broader institutional commitment to equity? And what does it take to establish equity as a core element of hospital systems and practice? Join critical care physician and health and human rights specialist Katherine Peeler, MD, MA as she hosts a conversation with expert panelists on the challenges physicians face in 21st century hospital systems as well as organization-level interventions to align hospital and physician efforts toward health equity. Panelists include: Omar B. Lateef, DO, Vikas Saini, MD, and Thea James, MD, MBA. Moderated by Kelsey N. Berry, PhD, and Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-C. Support provided by the Oswald DeN. Cammann Fund at Harvard University.
Organizational Ethics Consortia: Whats the Value of a Non-profit Hospital? HMS Center for Bioethics 2023-05-02 | What’s the Value of a Non-profit Hospital? Testing an Old Theory Against Evidence From a New National SurveyEconomist Kenneth Arrow once famously said, "The very word 'profit' is a signal that denies the trust relationship." By this reasoning, non-profit hospitals positively contribute to the health care industry at least in part by inviting the trust of their users. But does trust actually track with non-profit status? Can patients even pinpoint which hospitals are non-profits?Join management scholar and ethicist Lauren Taylor as she shares findings from a new national survey measuring public attitudes toward hospital ownership status. Discussion with management and public health scholar Nancy Kane and bioethics scholar Jonathan Marks will focus on revisiting the social value of non-profit hospitals to make evidence- and ethics-aligned recommendations for hospital practice and public policy.Presenter:Lauren Taylor, PhD, MPH, MDivAssistant Professor, Department of Population Health, NYU Grossman School of MedicineCommentators:Nancy Kane, DBAProfessor of Management, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public HealthJonathan H. Marks, BCL, MADirector, Bioethics Program; Professor of Bioethics, Humanities, Law, and Philosophy; Affiliate Faculty, Public Policy & International Affairs, Penn State UniversityModerators:Charlotte H. Harrison, PhD, JD, MPH, HEC-CCo-Chair, Organizational Ethics ConsortiumCenter for Bioethics, Harvard Medical SchoolImmediate Past Hospital Ethicist and Director, Office of EthicsBoston Children’s HospitalKelsey N. Berry, PhDAssociate Faculty Director, Master of Science in Bioethics Degree ProgramLecturer, Department of Global Health and Social MedicineHarvard Medical School
