Adding Life to Their Years: Pediatrics, Palliative Care and Ethics
Thank you for joining us for the 21st Annual Pediatric Bioethics Conference: Adding Life to Their Years: Pediatrics, Palliative Care and Ethics, where we explored the ethical questions that shape how we care, communicate and find meaning in the lives of children and families facing serious illness.
Videos of presentations are posted below.
Friday, July 17, 2026
Introduction to the Conference
Aaron Wightman, MD, MA, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
Pediatric Palliative Care: Moral and Medical, Past, Present and Future
Chris Feudtner, MD, PhD, MPH, HEC-C, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia/ University of Pennsylvania
Equity and Ease of Access: Pediatric Palliative and Hospice Care
Meaghann S. Weaver, MD, PhD, MPH, HEC-C, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital of Memphis, Tennessee
Children With Prolonged and Repeated Hospitalizations: Ethical Challenges and Opportunities
Jennifer K. Walter, MD, PhD, MS, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia/University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
Getting Unstuck: Navigating Intractable Disagreements in Pediatrics
Sabrina Derrington, MD, MA, HEC-C, FAAP, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Keck School of Medicine of University of Southern California
Forgoing Medically Provided Nutrition and Hydration — Recording Unavailable
Emily Berkman, MD, MA, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
The World Is Indeed Full of Peril — Recording Unavailable
Jennifer Kett, MD, MA, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
Engaging With Pediatric Existential and Total Suffering
Tyler Tate, MD, MA, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital/Stanford University
Can Sick Kids Flourish?
Erica K. Salter, PhD, HEC-C, Saint Louis University
Abstract Oral Presentations — Not Recorded
Harm Assessment: Best Interests
Moderator: Brennan Kim, MD, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
- Bryanna Moore, PhD, Department of Health Humanities and Bioethics, University of Rochester
- Taylor House, MD, MS, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health
- Zoe Ritchie, PhD, Cleveland Clinic
Communication
Moderator: Dan Kim, MD, MA, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
- Brenda Barnum, MA, BSN, Children's Hospital Los Angeles
- Gavin Enck, PhD, UT MD Anderson
- Krys Springer, MA, MDiv, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Navigating Disagreements
Moderator: Katie Porter, JD, MPH, Seattle Children’s Research Institute
- Giulia Adele Dinicola, PhD, MS, MA, HEC-C, Cleveland Clinic
- Jaime Hensel, MSN, FNP-BC, ACHPN, Children's Minnesota
Specific Populations
Moderator: Brittany Greene, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
- Phifer Nicholson Jr., MD, MTS, Department of Surgery, University of California, Los Angeles
- Ellen Keyser Endelman, MDiv, BCC, Children's Mercy Hospital
- Grant Lin, MD, PhD, Stanford University
Saturday, July 18, 2026
Welcome and Introduction
Aaron Wightman, MD, MA, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
Information Toxicity in an Era of Anti-Science
Amy Trowbridge, MD, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
Neuroprognostication — Uncertainty, Ableism and Hope
Monica Lemmon, MD, Duke University School of Medicine
Moral Compromise in Pediatrics and Burnout: Unpacking the Relationship
Randi Zlotnik Shaul, JD, LLM, PhD, The Hospital for Sick Children/University of Toronto
Douglas S. Diekema Keynote Address — Treating With the Frenemy: The Crucial and Complicated Interplay of Clinical Ethics and Palliative Care
Robert Macauley, MD, FAAP, FAAHPM, HEC-C, Oregon Health and Science University
Workshop Sessions — Not Recorded
Session 1: Measuring What Matters in Palliative Care
Erin K. Kross, MD, University of Washington/Cambia Palliative Care Center of Excellence
Jori Bogetz, MD, Research Director, Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics and Palliative Care, Seattle Children’s Research Institute
Session 2: To Tell or Not to Tell: A Workshop on Examining Matters of Diagnosis/Prognosis Disclosure
Sara Taub, MD, MBE, Oregon Health and Science University
Session 3: Ethical Issues in End-of-Life and Bereavement Care
Arika Moore, MSW, LICSW, APHSW-C, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
Luke Mosley, MD, MTS, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington
Sarah Farris, Journey Grief Support Program/Seattle Children’s
Session 4: Restorative Practices to Address Intersectional Harms in Clinical Settings
Georgina Campelia, PhD, HEC-C, University of Washington
Holly Vo, MD, MPH, MSc, MA, Seattle Children’s/University of Washington