21st Annual Pediatric Bioethics Conference

Save the Date! Registration Coming in Early 2026

Join us for the 21st annual Seattle Children’s Pediatric Bioethics Conference, Adding Life to Their Years: Pediatrics, Palliative Care and Ethics, from July 17–18, 2026, at Bell Harbor International Conference Center in Seattle.

This year’s conference will focus on issues at the heart of pediatrics: the relief of suffering, maintenance of hope and promotion of flourishing of children and their families. Bioethics and palliative care share these commitments, yet they sometimes bring different perspectives on how best to achieve them.

We will explore questions that arise at the intersection of pediatrics bioethics and palliative care, identifying areas of controversy and of synergy. In an era of rapid technological, financial and social change, this conference will provide space for thoughtful dialogue about the ethical challenges and opportunities shaping the future of pediatric care.

Join us as we explore the ethical questions that shape how we care, communicate and find meaning in the lives of children and families facing serious illness.

• What are the ethical implications of prolonged hospitalization and medical dependency? What ethical challenges emerge when hospitalization stretches from weeks to years?
• Can parents refuse tracheostomy?
• How should clinicians and families navigate disagreements about goals of care?
• Who should have access to pediatric palliative care, and how can we promote equity?
• What is the relationship between bioethics and palliative care?
• How can we provide prognostic information in situations infused with uncertainty?
• balance ableism and uncertainty when providing
• Can parents refuse to share diagnoses or prognoses with their children?
• How can communication strategies promote trust and combat misinformation? How can we build and sustain trust with families in an era of disinformation?
• How can we best support the flourishing of children and families facing serious illness?
• What are the ethical limits of parental decision-making near the end of life?
• How can we bridge mistrust in an era of disinformation and polarization?
• How can we best promote the flourishing of children and their families?
• How do bioethics and palliative care together illuminate, or at times complicate, our understanding of “a good outcome”?
• How should we respond to concerns about suffering?  
• Whose suffering counts? 

A speaker lineup is coming soon.