Center for Ethical Solutions
Encyclopedia
The Center for Ethical Solutions (CES), founded by Sigrid Fry-Revere
Sigrid Fry-Revere
Sigrid Fry-Revere is the founder and president of the Center for Ethical Solutions, a bioethics think tank; she formerly served as Director of Bioethics Studies at the Cato Institute. She earned her BA with honors at Smith College in 1983 and went on to earn her Masters in Jurisprudence at...

, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit bioethics
Bioethics
Bioethics is the study of controversial ethics brought about by advances in biology and medicine. Bioethicists are concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, and philosophy....

 think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...

 based in Lovettsville, Virginia whose mission is to find practical solutions to controversial problems in the field of medical ethics
Medical ethics
Medical ethics is a system of moral principles that apply values and judgments to the practice of medicine. As a scholarly discipline, medical ethics encompasses its practical application in clinical settings as well as work on its history, philosophy, theology, and sociology.-History:Historically,...

. CES supports research and public education, seeking to achieve its goals through research and developing products including books and documentary films to educate the public. Lobbying and participation in political campaigns are specifically excluded from its activities.

Current projects

  • Solving the Organ Shortage
CES is studying possible ways to solve the US organ shortage by examining the different organ donation
Organ donation
Organ donation is the donation of biological tissue or an organ of the human body, from a living or dead person to a living recipient in need of a transplantation. Transplantable organs and tissues are removed in a surgical procedure following a determination, based on the donor's medical and...

 systems in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

, which has eliminated its country's waiting list for kidneys (a claim contested by some), and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, which has the highest rate of organ donation in the world. Beginning in November 2008, Dr. Fry-Revere and Dr. Bahar Bastani, an American-Iranian nephrologist and professor of internal medicine at St. Louis Medical School in Missouri, traveled in Iran for six weeks to collect statistical data as well as testimonies from those involved in the transplant community there. The "Iranian model" involves legalizing compensation for organ donation, and the "Spanish model" involves a comprehensive national procurement system, maintaining positive views of organ donation in the mass media, and proactive donor detection, all coordinated by the National Transplant Organization
Spanish Transplant Organization
The National Transplant Organization is an institution belonging to the Spanish Ministry of Health and Consumption, put in charge of developing the competencies related with provision and clinical utilization of organs, tissues and cells....

. While Spain does employ an opt-out system for organ donation, current legislation requires consent from the relatives of the deceased before organs can be donated, and research has suggested that the increased rate of organ donation should be attributed to the actions of the National Transplant Organization and not the legislative approach.
CES is currently creating a documentary film which chronicles the struggles of American Steve Lessin as he negotiates end stage renal disease.

  • Meeting the Needs of America's Veterans
Though the project is still in early stages of development, CES intends to study the medical and healthcare needs of American veterans, including reintegration into society, as well as the readiness of the US healthcare system to accommodate the needs of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Special attention will be paid to the need for mental health care, as a higher percentage of returning soldiers are experiencing posttraumatic stress disorder than from previous military operations.

  • Legal Trends in Bioethics
Starting in the Fall of 2009 CES will publish Legal Trends in Bioethics
Legal Trends in Bioethics
Legal Trends in Bioethics is a column created by Sigrid Fry-Revere for the Journal of Clinical Ethics. The column "tracks bioethics related issues through all stages of litigation, legislation, and regulation at both the federal and state levels, as well as occasionally mentioning exceptional...

 through its website. Previously a column in the quarterly Journal of Clinical Ethics, Legal Trends tracks developments in the field of bioethics. "Through publication on the Internet, the information provided by the column will be more up-to-date and relevant for anyone interested in tracking legal issues in bioethics." Past editions authored by Sigrid Fry-Revere will also be available through the website.http://ethical-solutions.org/Legal%20Trends.html

  • Fact Sheets

Quick Facts Sheet on Kidney Disease and the Organ Shortage

Quick Facts Sheet on PTSD (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder) and TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury)

Proposed Projects

  • Pain Management
This project explores social attitudes towards and public awareness of the need for pain management
Pain management
Pain management is a branch of medicine employing an interdisciplinary approach for easing the suffering and improving the quality of life of those living with pain. The typical pain management team includes medical practitioners, clinical psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists,...

 with potentially addictive opiate
Opiate
In medicine, the term opiate describes any of the narcotic opioid alkaloids found as natural products in the opium poppy plant.-Overview:Opiates are so named because they are constituents or derivatives of constituents found in opium, which is processed from the latex sap of the opium poppy,...

s for patients with end-of-life
End-of-life
End-of-life is a term used with respect to a product supplied to customers, indicating that the product is in the end of its useful lifetime and a vendor will no longer be marketing, selling, or sustaining a particular product and may also be limiting or ending support for the product...

 or serious chronic pain
Chronic pain
Chronic pain has several different meanings in medicine. Traditionally, the distinction between acute and chronic pain has relied upon an arbitrary interval of time from onset; the two most commonly used markers being 3 months and 6 months since the initiation of pain, though some theorists and...

.

  • Patient Advocacy
CES plans to examine whether patient advocacy
Patient advocacy
A Patient Advocate acts as a support structure and if legally contracted to do so may act as a liaison between a patient and their Health Care Provider. Most health care professionals see themselves as advocates for their patients, however their time and scope are limited by their job function...

can or should be integrated into common healthcare practices. Currently, the private sector offers private advocates who oversee customers' medical care and act as liaisons between patients and healthcare providers, but this service is often financially accessible to only the wealthy.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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