Bioethics News
Vaccine Hesitancy: A Personal and Community Dilemma
Seattle's Child, April 4, 2012
Here in Washington, questions and concerns about vaccinations have led to the highest vaccine exemption rate for kindergartners in the United States. “Vaccines, probably more than any other medical product, are under constant scientific scrutiny,” says Dr. Doug Diekema, a physician and bioethicist at Seattle Children’s Research Institute.
Pediatricians Fight for the Herd
Infectious Disease Special Edition, April 2012
The increasing incidence of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks in the United States has exposed the need for better patient education, improved immunization requirements for public schools and increased coverage. “Every parent is different and it’s just simply wrong to approach all of these vaccine-resistant parents with a broad brush,” said Douglas Diekema, MD, MPH.
How Do Vaccine Schedules for Kids Get Designed?
Health Blog (Wall Street Journal), March 20, 2012
Some parents worry about the number of vaccines that pediatricians and public-health groups recommend kids get these days. Dr. Douglas Diekema, a vaccine expert and pediatrics professor at the University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Hospital, says that it’s important for doctors to take seriously parents’ concerns about vaccines.
Why did Seattle display babies in incubators at the World’s Fair?
KPLU, March 2012
At Seattle’s first World’s Fair in 1909, there were premature babies in incubators on display to show off the new technology. Dr. Douglas Diekema, a bioethicist at Seattle Children’s Research Institute, says that type of exhibit would not be considered appropriate today.
Studies on alternative immunization schedules and headaches after brain injury
The Daily of the University of Washington, December 13, 2011
A new study finds parents often ask Washington pediatricians for alternative immunization schedules, which usually occur at regular intervals for maximum efficiency. Researchers at the University of Washington Medical Center, led by Dr. Doug Opel, assistant professor of pediatrics at the UW and bioethicist at Seattle Children’s Research Institute, conducted the study.
Pediatricians struggle over patients who won’t vaccinate
KPLU, November 30, 2011
According to a new study from Seattle Children's Research Institute, 77% of pediatricians in Washington state are being asked by patients to use an alternative vaccine schedule. Seattle Children’s Dr. Doug Opel discusses the study findings.
Which vaccines doctors advise parents not to put off
KING 5 TV, November 29, 2011
According to a new study from Seattle Children's Research Institute, 77% of pediatricians in Washington state are being asked by patients to use an alternative vaccine schedule. Seattle Children’s Dr. Doug Opel discusses the study findings.
Study: Doctors resist delaying key kid vaccines
The Seattle Times, November 28, 2011
77% of Washington state pediatricians report that they are sometimes or frequently asked to provide alternative childhood vaccine schedules for their patients, according to a new study from Seattle Children’s Research Institute. Researchers also found that 61% of Washington state pediatricians are comfortable using an alternative schedule when asked by a parent. Doug Opel shares his comments on this issue.
Student-privacy laws complicate schools' ability to prevent attacks
The Seattle Times, October 31, 2011
Parents are not legally required to inform schools about their child's health issues, and medical professionals are bound by confidentiality rules not to disclose. While it's not uncommon for schools to have issues with adolescents facing psychiatric crises, Dr. Doug Diekema, a physician at Seattle Children's Hospital, says disclosure of that information could be harmful to individual students.
The Medical Benefits of Circumcising Boys
Good Morning America, October 5, 2011
Between San Francisco's attempted ban on infant circumcision and the move by 19 state governments to defund Medicaid coverage for the procedure, the millennia-old act of removing a newborn boy's foreskin has undoubtedly become a point of controversy in America. Doug Diekema, MD comments on this issue.
Many parents opt for "alternative" vaccination schedule
USA Today, October 3, 2011
At a time when many infectious diseases are making a comeback, about 13% of parents are skipping or delaying their children's immunizations and following an "alternative" vaccination schedule that puts kids at serious risk, a new study says. Unvaccinated babies are particularly vulnerable, says Douglas Diekema, a doctor and bioethicist at Seattle Children's Research Institute.
Washington State Raises Bar for Parents to Skip Kids’ Vaccinations
Shots (NPR blog), September 27, 2011
The vast majority of parents get their kids vaccinated, but a persistent minority decline to do so. State laws vary widely on how easy they make it for parents to get vaccine waivers, and some have implemented requirements similar to Washington, says Dr. Douglas Diekema.
Some pediatricians refuse to treat children whose parents oppose immunizations
The Washington Post, September 26, 2011
Dr. Doug Diekema comments on the vaccination issue.
Should obese children be taken away from parents?
KING 5 TV, July 14, 2011
There are roughly 2 million obese children in the United States, prompting a suggestion by some doctors that children who are already suffering from obesity-related conditions should be removed from their homes. But bioethicist Dr. Doug Diekema with Seattle Children's Hospital said it's not that easy.
Sammamish Parents: Here Are Smart Tips to Avoid a Trip to the Emergency Room with Your Child This Summer
Sammamish Patch, July 13, 2011
Seattle Children’s Dr. Doug Diekema offers parents tips for keeping kids safe while having fun in the sun this summer
Some pediatricians taking stand for vaccine program
Los Angeles Times, July 7, 2011
A small but growing number of parents think vaccines against childhood diseases are unsafe and are refusing or delaying shots for their children, despite the discrediting of a medical study linking vaccines and autism that stirred alarm. Dr. Doug Diekema comments on this trend.
City's Proposed Ban on Circumcision Lands in Court
MedPage Today, June 24, 2011
A proposal to ban male infant circumcision in San Francisco, scheduled for a city-wide vote in November, may be pulled off the ballot if a lawsuit filed by physicians, Jewish groups, and a Muslim family is successful. Douglas Diekema, MD, a pediatrician at Seattle Children's Hospital, comments on the proposed ban.
Changes in Oregon Law Put Faith-Healing Parents on Trial
The New York Times, May 31, 2011
In June, 17-month-old Alayna Wyland was placed in foster care while she received treatment for a benign tumor that her parents wouldn’t seek treatment for. They are members of the Followers of Christ Church, a faith-healing sect whose members shun medicine. But Dr. Douglas S. Diekema, a medical ethicist at Children’s Hospital in Seattle, says that more harm than good may have been done to Alayna when state caseworkers pulled her from her parents’ care.
Condoms, circumcision, safe sex and the supot
Inquirer Global Nation, May 23, 2011
Experts agree that female circumcision can hardly be compared to the procedure on males. “The male equivalent of those would be removal of the penis with or without the scrotum,” Dr. Douglas Diekema of the Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics at Seattle Children’s Hospital, told ABC News.
Circumcision Ban to Appear on San Francisco Municipal Election Ballot
ABC News, May 20, 2011
San Francisco city officials said Wednesday that there are enough signatures to put a measure banning circumcision on the city ballot in November 2011. Dr. Douglas Diekema, director of education for the Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics at Seattle Children's Hospital, comments on the benefits of circumcision.
Circumcision Pros And Cons: 'Intactivists' Take On Traditional Ritual
Huffington Post, May 16, 2011
The AAP is in the process of revising its official stance on circumcision, but when the new policy eventually comes out, Dr. Doug Diekema predicts that there will be no significant changes.
San Francisco May Vote on Banning Male Circumcision
ABC News, May 3, 2011
This November, San Francisco voters may have the opportunity to vote on whether they feel that circumcision should be banned in the city. Dr. Douglas Diekema, director of education for the Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics at Seattle Children's Hospital, said that the procedure has been shown to reduce the risk of several infections.
It's a boy! (Are you having him circumcised?)
The Chicago Tribune, February 17, 2011
Dr. Doug Diekema, a member of the AAP's circumcision task force, comments on the AAP’s stance on circumcision. The AAP's new policy isn't expected to recommend circumcision outright, but it's likely to give more credence to health benefits, he explains.
What Would You Do?
Science Magazine, February 11, 2011
Seattle Children’s Dr. Benjamin Wilfond comments on the ethics of sharing genetic findings with patients or study subjects. While many genetic studies strip DNA samples of personal identifiers and assign each a number, such codes can often be linked to an individual by a central computer or by the researcher who collected the samples in the first place.
Around the Web
Science Careers Blog, January 24, 2011
The British Medical Journal last week published its third (and last) installment of journalist Brian Deer's investigation into Andrew Wakefield and misconduct in his research attempting to link the MMR vaccine and autism. "Thirteen years later, we are only now beginning to understand the root causes of the multiple system failures involved in the Wakefield incident," writes Douglas J. Opel of Seattle Children's Research Institute in a related editorial.
Assuring research integrity in the wake of Wakefield
BMJ, January 19, 2011
Drs. Douglas Opel, Douglas Diekema and Edgar Marcuse present an editorial in the journal BMJ in the wake of Wakefield’s autism research coming under scrutiny. They write, “How could this happen? To answer this, perhaps we need to focus less on the people involved and more on the defects within the biomedical research enterprise that permit such egregious misconduct. After all, Wakefield was able to circumvent the existing safeguards established to ensure the responsible conduct of research, the protection of research subjects, and the accurate and honest publication of research findings.”