Search is Powered by Google
Transplants / Organ Donations News

Penn Bioethicist Tackles Changing Boundaries Of Organ Donation Guidelines

Main Category: Transplants / Organ Donations
Article Date: 14 Aug 2008 - 1:00 PDT

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon view / write opinions   rate icon rate article
Current Article Ratings:

Patient / Public:not yet rated

Health Professional:not yet rated

Article Opinions: 0 posts

The babies were dying without life support, they might live just another few minutes. Their families had said goodbye, and wanted their newborns to become organ donors, in hopes of saving another tiny life. But the babies' conditions couldn't meet the normal standards for organ donor eligibility. What to do?

The August 14 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine explores the issue of organ donation after cardiac death through the lens of emotionally charged cases like these, which occurred at the Denver Children's Hospital. In the journal's Perspective Roundtable, Arthur Caplan, PhD, director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, weighs in on the ethical considerations of the changing assumptions about when death occurs, the importance of respecting "the dead donor rule" and how to decide which patients are suitable organ donors.

To view video of Caplan's participation in the NEJM Perspective Roundtable on these issues, or to read a transcript of the discussion, which was moderated by physician-author Atul Gawande, visit http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/359/7/669/DC1.

PENN Medicine is a $3.5 billion enterprise dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. PENN Medicine consists of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System.

Penn's School of Medicine is currently ranked #4 in the nation in U.S.News & World Report's survey of top research-oriented medical schools; and, according to most recent data from the National Institutes of Health, received over $379 million in NIH research funds in the 2006 fiscal year. Supporting 1,400 fulltime faculty and 700 students, the School of Medicine is recognized worldwide for its superior education and training of the next generation of physician-scientists and leaders of academic medicine.

The University of Pennsylvania Health System includes three hospitals its flagship hospital, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, rated one of the nation's top 10 "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S.News & World Report; Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation's first hospital; and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center a faculty practice plan; a primary-care provider network; two multispecialty satellite facilities; and home care and hospice.

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
3535 Market St., Mezzanine
Philadelphia, PA 19104
United States
http://www.med.upenn.edu




Customized Homepage Weekly Newsletters Daily News Alerts
Home About Us News Licensing Free Website Feeds Free Tools & Content Links Tell a Friend Accessibility Help / FAQ Article Submission Contact Us
Psychiatry Urology
Bipolar Diabetes Schizophrenia

add medical news today to your facebook

medical news gadget

Add to Google


developers
website gadget code
website news code
medical news rss feed links


MedReader RSS Reader

customize your homepage


These are the most read articles from this news category for the last 6 months:
Top Article Star
Man Has Double Arm Transplant In Munich, Germany
02 Aug 2008
A 54-year-old German farmer who had lost both arms in an accident was given a double full-arm transplant at the Munich Clinic, Germany. A hospital spokesperson said the donor was a teenager who had died before undergoing surgery...


Learning to Stretch the Right Way
Learning to Stretch the Right Way

Knowing the right way to stretch can prevent injury and help you make the most out of your workout.

more videos are available in our health videos section.