| Ethics consultation in children's hospitals: results from a survey of pediatric clinical ethicists. | |
| | |
MedLine Citation:
|
PMID: 20194289 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
|
OBJECTIVES: Ethics consultation is a widely endorsed mechanism for resolving conflict, facilitating communication, and easing moral distress in health care. Although ethics consultation has been well characterized in the adult setting, little is known about ethics consultation or ethics programs in pediatrics. We conducted a national survey of ethicists at freestanding children's hospitals to explore the structures and processes of their ethics-consultation services and committees and to characterize their training and professional activities. METHODS: We contacted freestanding children's hospitals from the member list of the National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions (N = 46) to identify the ethics leader at each institution. This individual was invited to complete an on-line survey instrument. The survey asked about ethicists' training to fulfill their ethics-related roles, their policies and methods for ethics consultation, and the structure and funding of their ethics committees. Thirty-three ethicists (72%) responded. RESULTS: On-the-job experience (73%) was the most frequently reported form of training; a minority of ethicists endorsed each other type of training. Although 60% of the respondents reported having a policy for ethics consultation, several elements recommended by national consensus statements were inconsistently included. In addition, respondents reported variable adherence to standard components of the consultation process, including meeting with the patient or family, following up with the clinical team, and providing a written report of the consultation. A minority of respondents reported having salary support (33%), administrative support (46%), or a budget (24%) for their work in ethics. CONCLUSIONS: Although ethics-consultation policies and practices at freestanding children's hospitals are generally well aligned with published norms, our data reveal imperfect adherence to consensus standards. Additional research is needed to determine how this practice variation, as well as the lack of salary support, budgets, and administrative assistance, affect the quality of ethics consultation at these institutions. |
| | |
Authors:
|
Jennifer C Kesselheim; Judith Johnson; Steven Joffe |
Related Documents
:
|
16684909 - Ethics and lactation consultants: developing knowledge, skills, and tools. 17874209 - Ethics consultation and autonomy. 12222619 - The professional status of bioethics consultation. 11643219 - Is ethics consultation dangerous? 17943459 - Research on clinical ethics and consultation. introduction to the theme. 17612879 - Overview of psychiatric ethics iii: principles-based ethics. 22418039 - American cancer society, american society for colposcopy and cervical pathology, and am... 20064659 - Ifpa meeting 2009 workshops report. |
Publication Detail:
|
Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article Date: 2010-03-01 |
Journal Detail:
|
Title: Pediatrics Volume: 125 ISSN: 1098-4275 ISO Abbreviation: Pediatrics Publication Date: 2010 Apr |
Date Detail:
|
Created Date: 2010-04-02 Completed Date: 2010-04-27 Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
|
Nlm Unique ID: 0376422 Medline TA: Pediatrics Country: United States |
Other Details:
|
Languages: eng Pagination: 742-6 Citation Subset: AIM; IM |
Affiliation:
|
Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney St, Boston, MA 02115, USA. jennifer_kesselheim@dfci.harvard.edu |
Export Citation:
|
APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
|
Adult Aged Data Collection / ethics*, methods, trends Ethicists* Ethics Consultation / ethics*, trends Female Hospitals, Pediatric / ethics*, trends Humans Male Middle Aged Pediatrics / ethics*, methods, trends |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
Previous Document: Acute Periorbital Infections: Who Needs Emergent Imaging?
Next Document: Erythropoietin increases expression and function of vascular copper- and zinc-containing superoxide ...