Douglas J Opel, MD, MPH
Bioethics Consultation Service, General Pediatrics
On staff since September 2005
Children's Title: Director, Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care
Academic Title: Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine
Research Center: Center for Clinical and Translational Research, Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care
"I am passionate about treating the whole patient. I try not to stop at understanding a child's illness; I also try to understand their (and their family's) emotions, aspirations, values and goals. It is gratifying to see how much this often helps the healing process."
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Douglas J. Opel, MD, is a professor in the Divisions of Bioethics and General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, and at the Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care at Seattle Childrens Hospital.
Dr. Opel received his MD from the University of Chicago and completed his residency and chief residency in pediatrics at the University of Washington and Seattle Children's Hospital. He is a general pediatrician at Seattle Children's Hospital and the University of Washington Medical Center. His research interests include medical decision-making, communication science and public health ethics.
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Related Pages
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The Opel Lab focuses on clinician-parent communication and medical decision-making, with a primary goal to improve child health by identifying effective clinician communication strategies that positively influence parent acceptance of recommended interventions for children. Specific research topics include vaccine communication and delivery, shared decision-making, and the clinician-parent relationship.
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My son was quite ill and the doctors were not sure exactly what was wrong for a while. It was a very scary time for us. Dr. Opel was wonderful! And exactly like his quote says, he does care for the patient and family as a whole. We saw more doctors than I ever wanted to during our stay at Children's, but Dr. Opel was our favorite. We ran into him a year later in the cafeteria while there for follow up care and he remember us, our son, and even what we did for a living. Fabulous man! Excellent doctor!
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Manuscripts in Refereed Journals
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Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHImpact of a Pertussis Epidemic on Infant Vaccination in Washington State
Pediatrics, 2014 Aug 18 : 456-64 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHHow You Start the Conversation Matters
Minn Med., 2014 May : 97(5)50-1 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHA 6-Month-Old With Vaccine-Hesitant Parents
Pediatrics, 2014 March : 133(3)526-30 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHRethinking Vaccine Policy Making in an Era of Vaccine Hesitancy: Time to Rebuild, Not Remodel?
Hum Vaccin Immunother, 2013 Dec. : 9(12)2672-3 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHThe Architecture of Provider-Parent Vaccine Discussions at Health Supervision Visits
Pediatrics, 2013 Dec. : 132(6)1037-46 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHThe Relationship Between Parent Attitudes About Childhood Vaccines Survey Scores and Future Child Immunization Status: a Validation Study
JAMA Pediatr, 2013 Nov. : 167(11)1065-71 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHUse of Alternative Childhood Immunization Schedules in King County, Washington, USA
Vaccine, 2013 Oct 1 : 31(42)4699-701 -
Douglas J. Opel, MD, MPHMissed Opportunities for Adolescent Vaccination, 2006-2011
J Adolesc Health, 2013 Jul 1 : 53(4)492-7 -
Opel DJ, Marcuse EKWindow or Mirror: Social Networks' Role in Immunization Decisions
Pediatrics, 2013 Apr 15 : 131(5)1619-20 -
Opel DJ, Taylor JA, Phillipi CA, Diekema DSThe Intersection of Evidence and Values in Clinical guidelines: Who Decides What Constitutes Acceptable Risk in the Care of Children?
Hospital Pediatrics, 2013 Apr 1 : 3(2)87-91 -
Opel DJ, Marcuse EKThe Enigma of Alternative Childhood Immunization Schedules: What Are the Questions?
JAMA Pediatrics, 2013 Jan 21 : 167(3)304-5 -
Opel DJPhysician, Parent, Patient: Where Exactly Is the Line?
Hastings Center Report, 2012 Oct 15 : 42(6)14-18 -
Opel DJ, Banerjee A, King P, Paul C, Glassy D, Yasuda KWashington State Licensed Child Care Facility Directors' Perspectives on Childhood Immunization
Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society, 2012 Sep 19 : 2(1)40-9 -
Opel DJ, Olson MEEthics for the Pediatrician: Bioethics Education and Resources
Pediatrics in Review, 2012 Aug 1 : 33(8)370-73 -
Taylor JA, Opel DJChoriophobia: A One-Act Play
Pediatrics, 2012 Jul 9 : 130(2)342-6 -
Opel DJ, Robinson JD, Heritage J, Korfiatis C, Taylor JA, Mangione-Smith RCharacterizing Providers Immunization Communication Behaviors during Health Supervision Visits with Vaccine-Hesitant Parents: A Pilot Study
Vaccine, 2012 Feb 8 : 30(7)1269-75 -
Wightman A, Opel DJ, Marcuse E, Taylor JWashington State Pediatricians Attitudes Towards Alternative Childhood Immunization Schedules
Pediatrics, 2011 Nov 28 : 128(6)1094-9 -
Opel DJ, Diekema DSFinding the proper balance between freedom and justice: why we should not eliminate personal belief exemptions to vaccine mandates
Journal of health politics, policy and law, 2011 Oct 14 : 37(1)141-7 -
Payne DC, Humiston S, Opel DJ, Klein E, Kennedy A, Wikswo M, Downing K, Kobayashi A, Albertin C, Chesley C, Staat MA Multi-Center, Qualitative Assessment of Pediatrician and Parental Perspectives in Addressing the Detection of Porcine Circovirus in Rotavirus Vaccines
BMC Pediatrics, 2011 Sep 26 : 11:83 -
Opel DJ, Taylor J, Mangione-Smith R, Solomon C, Catz S, and Martin DConstruct Validity of a Survey to Identify Vaccine-Hesitant Parents
Vaccine, 2011 Jul 16 : 29(38) -
Opel DJ, Korfiatis C, Wiese C, Catz S, Mangione-Smith R, Taylor JA, and MartinDevelopment of a Survey to Identify Vaccine Hesitant Parents: The Parental Attitudes about Childhood Vaccines Survey
Human Vaccines, 2011 Apr 1 : 7(4)419-25 -
Opel DJ, Diekema DS, Marcuse EMNot Just a Bad Apple, but a Bad Barrel: The Biomedical Research System in the Wake of Wakefield
BMJ, 2011 Jan 22 : 342.179-80
Other Publications
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Opel DParental Refusals of Vaccination and School Vaccine Mandates: Balancing Parental Freedom, Child Welfare, and Public Health In Clinical Ethics in Pediatrics: A Case-based Textbook
Cambridge University Press, 2011 Oct. : 205-10
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Presentations Title Event Location Date Identifying, Understanding, and Talking with Vaccine-Hesitant Parents Symposium, "From package to protection: How do we close global coverage gaps to optimize the impact of vaccination?" Fondation Mrieux Conference Center, Veyrier-du-Lac, France Sep 24, 2014 - Sep 25, 2014 Communicating with Parents about Vaccination National Foundation for Infectious Diseases Clinical Vaccinology Course Seattle, WA Mar 22, 2014 The Parent Attitudes about Childhood Vaccine (PACV) Survey: Development, Evaluation, and Future Directions National Vaccine Advisory Committee Sep 9, 2013 Rising to the Occasion: Strategies for Communicating with Vaccine Hesitant Parents American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition New Orleans, LA Oct 22, 2012 Taking Talk to the Next Level: In Search of Communication Practices that Increase Parental Immunization Acceptance National Immunization Conference, Hosted by the CDC On Line Atlanta, GA Mar 27, 2012 Findings on Alternative Immunization Schedule Practices Institute of Medicine Committee on the Safety of the Childhood Immunization Schedule Seattle, WA Mar 8, 2012 Increasing Childhood Immunization Through Improved Provider-Parent Communication Pediatric Grand Rounds, University of Oklahoma Oklahoma City, OK Nov 11, 2011 Blurring the Boundaries of Research and Clinical Care: A Constructive Ambiguity? 12th Annual American Society for Bioethics and Humanities Meeting Minneapolis, MN Oct 14, 2011 Rising to the Occasion: Strategies for Communicating with Vaccine Hesitant Parents Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting Denver, CO May 3, 2011
Overview
- Board Certification(s)
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Pediatrics
- Medical/Professional School
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University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, IL
University of Washington, Seattle, WA - Residency
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University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA
- Fellowship
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University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA
- Research Description
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My research interests include provider communication strategies that improve parental acceptance of childhood vaccines and devising methods to identify and address organizational issues underlying ethical conflict.
- Research Focus Area
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Translational Research