The AMA was founded in part to establish the first national code of medical ethics. Today the Code is widely recognized as authoritative ethics guidance for physicians through its Principles of Medical Ethics interpreted in Opinions of AMA’s Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs that address the evolving challenges of contemporary practice.
Access to unproven, experimental treatments by individuals who are unable or unwilling to participate in clinical trials of new interventions raise ethical concerns.
Physicians’ dual obligations to serve both the well-being of their individual patients and that of other patients and the community at large come into sharp tension in a public health emergency.
During times of extraordinary need, would it be appropriate to involve medical students in providing direct patientcare to supplement the physician workforce?