University at Buffalo

Center for Clinical Ethics and Humanities in Health Care

Bioethics Bulletin

Editor: Tim Madigan
April 1996
Volume Three, Number Four


Co-Directors: Gerald Logue, MD and Stephen Wear, PhD
Secretary: Lisa Bolten
Research Associate: Charles Jack, MA
Address: Center for Clinical Ethics and Humanities in Health Care
Veteran's Affairs Medical Center
3495 Bailey Avenue Buffalo, NY 14215

Telephone: 862-3412 FAX: 862-4748
Website: http://wings.buffalo.edu/faculty/research/bioethics/
E-mail sent to Lisa BoltenLBolten@ubmedc.buffalo.edu.

Newsletter Distribution

The Center newsletter can be delivered to you via e-mail or fax. If you would like to receive the newsletter over the Internet, please forward your request to Jack Freer, MD JFreer@ubmedb.buffalo.edu. If you would like to receive it by fax, call Lisa Bolten at 862-3412 and tell her your fax number. We encourage the use of e-mail and fax distribution rather than paper for the newsletter. Please let us know if there are any people you would like to have placed on our mailing list.


Upcoming Center Meetings

The Center currently has three committees: Community Affairs, Education and Research. All Center members are welcome to participate in these committees.

Ethics Grand Rounds

There will be an ethics grand rounds on Tuesday, April 9th at 8:00 AM, Millard Fillmore Hospital, Gates Circle, Webster Hall. It will examine the recently published "Support Study." This large multi-center study reported disturbing findings about the hospital care of dying patients. For information, contact Jack Freer JFreer@ubmedb.buffalo.edu. or at 887-4852).

Center Reading Group

The Center has established a second reading and research group (beyond the "Health Care Policy Group"), the purpose of which is to discuss in-progress publications and encourage new publications mad allied research activities. The first work being discussed is Stephen Wear's book Informed Consent: Patient Autonomy and Physician Beneficence Within Clinical Medicine. The book, published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 1993, will be going into its second edition, and Wear is interested in receiving comments and suggestions.

The next two meetings will be held on Wednesday, April 3 and Wednesday, April 17 at 4 PM, at the Center for Inquiry, 1310 Sweet Home Road, between Maple and Rensch Roads in Amherst. Look for the twin red-and-white gates. If you plan to attend, please contact Chuck Jack jackubphil@aol.com. at 862-3412. He will send you a copy of the first eight chapters. Also let him know if you are interested in attending future reading group meetings.


Upcoming Lectures

"Can An Animal Help? Understanding Animal-Assisted Activities and Therapy." Thursday, April 11, 8:00 AM - Noon. Sponsored by the Occupational Therapy Assistant Advisory Board, Erie Community College-North Campus. Kittinger Building, Room 100. Cost - $25.00 per person. Presenters: Marion Owczarczak, MA, Priscilla Hauber, COTA/CTRA. For information, call Jan Celani, ECC-North OTA Program, 634-0800.

"Pediatric Advanced Life Support - Provider." Saturday, April 13 and Sunday, April 14. Sponsored by the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo through the Department of Pediatrics. To be held at the Cary-Farber-Sherman Addition, UB South Campus. The goals of this course are to provide: (1) information and strategies for preventing cardiopulmonary arrest in infants or children, (2) the information for recognizing the infant or child at risk of cardiopulmonary arrest, and (3) the cognitive and psychomotor skills necessary for resuscitating and stabilizing the infant or child victim of cardiopulmonary arrest. The course is intended for pediatricians, housestaff, emergency physicians, family physicians, nurses, and pre-hospital care personnel. Approved for 13.0 hours of AMA/PRA Category 1 credit. Contact Susan Carden, RN at 878-7953 for further information.

"Medical Ethics Roundtable Discussion: The Influence of Rationing in Medical Technology on Determining the Value of Human Life." Thursday, April 18, 3:30 PM - 5:15 PM at D'Youville College, 320 Porter Avenue, Buffalo. The discussion will be chaired by Richard T. Hull, professor of philosophy, SUNY at Buffalo. It is being held in conjunction with the 24th Conference on Value Inquiry. Registration is $5.00 - students admitted free. For more information, contact John M. Abbarno, Conference Coordinator, 881-3200, ext. 6540.

"Balloon Session: Open Discussion For Research Ideas/Projects." Thursday, April 18. Faculty Development Workshop - Sponsored by the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo through the Department of Family Medicine. To be held at the Erie County Medical Center, Family Medicine Modular Complex Conference room, 7:30 AM. Contact Heather Hebeler hhebeler@ubmede.buffalo.edu at 898-4743 for further information.

"Paths to Healing: Caring for Grieving Families and Children." New York State Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Conference. April 18-19. Co- sponsored by Hospice Buffalo. Sheraton Inn, Buffalo. Guest speakers include Rabbi Dr. Earl Grollman, Alan D. Wolfelt, PhD, and Wanda Henry- Jenkins, MHS. The conference will focus on helping personal sorrow, public support and addressing children's needs. Registration includes a luncheon, breaks and materials. The conference will be held from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM on April 18 and 19. To attend one day, the fee is $75; for both days, the fee is $115. For further information or to receive a conference brochure, call 1-800-336-7437 or 837-7438.

"Women Physicians in Primary Care Conference." Saturday, April 20. Presenters: Perri Klass, MD, Olivia Smith Blackwell, MD, Lucie DiMaggio, MD, Deborah Richter, MD, Dana Drummond, MD, Hephzibah Gonzalez-Pena, MD, Darrell Grace, DO, Kathleen Grimm, MD, Jennifer Jehrio, MD, Colleen Mattimore, MD, Mary McGorray, MD, Sharon Meropol, MD. Sponsored by the Primary Care Resource Center, The Graduate Medical Dental Education Consortium of Buffalo, State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. To be held at the Buffalo Hyatt Hotel, 8:30 AM - 4:45 PM. $10.00 registration fee is required. Topics include: Keynote: Making It Up As You Go Along; Panel Discussion: Discovering the Possibilities; Breakout Sessions: Just One Of Those Days; Crystallizing Moments in Primary Care Residencies; Urinary Symptoms; What Are the Possiblities? For further information, contact the Primary Care Resource Center at 829-3176.

"The Master's In Health Professions Education." Thursday, April 25. Presenters: Diane Schwartz, MLS, S. Ramalingam, MD. Faculty Development Workshop. Sponsored by the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo through the Department of Family Medicine. To be held at the Erie County Medical Center, Family Medicine Modular Complex conference room, 7:30 AM. Contact Heather Hebeler hhebeler@ubmede.buffalo.edu at 898-4743 for further information.

"Rape and Legal Issues." Wednesday, May 1. Presenter: Dr. Susan Littler. City-Wide Grand Rounds. Sponsored by the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo through the Department of Gynecology/Obstetrics. Held at Erie County Medical Center, 3rd floor Amphitheater, 9:15 AM. Approved for 1.0 hours of AMA/PRA Category 1 credit. Contact Patty Korta at 898- 3656 for further information.

59th Annual Spring Clinical Day. Saturday, May 11. Sponsored by the Medical Alumni Association. Buffalo Marriott Ballroom. Featuring a luncheon talk by Sherwin Nuland, MD, author of How We Die, entitled "Death, The Doctor and Hope." There will also be a panel discussion on "End of Life/Quality of Life" with Martin Brecher, MD, Jack P. Freer, MD, Ross G. Hewitt, MD and Robert A. Milch, MD. Further details will be given in the next "Bioethics Bulletin."

History Of Medicine Conference

The 69th annual meeting of the American Association for the History of Medicine will be held in Buffalo, from May 9-12, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel . Special functions such as the Annual Banquet and the Garrison lecture and reception will showcase the rich architectural heritage of Buffalo, including Rockwell Hall on the Buffalo State Campus, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, and the Center for the Arts on the North Campus of SUNY-Buffalo. A special exhibit on medicine in Western New York will be mounted at the Historical Society. For details on how to register, please contact James Bono, Department of History, Park Hall, SUNY-Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14260; phone: 645-2282, ext. 559; e-mail:hischaos@acsu.buffalo.edu.

Members Corner

Tim Madigan, Center newsletter editor, was a presenter at a conference on "Making Medical Decisions," Saturday, March 23rd at the Williams Club of New York City. He spoke on "Ethical Theories and Their Applications."

Comments and Suggestions

Your comments and suggestions regarding this newsletter are encouraged. Please send them to the Center address, or by e-mail to the newsletter editor, Tim Madigan timmadigan@aol.com. We also need information on upcoming events that would be of interest to Center members. The deadline for the next newsletter is April 15th. (Don't forget to pay your taxes by then, too.)