Medical Panel addresses issues in cancer
Viewing of play "Wit" sparks biomedical and ethical concern
Heidi Schnarr
Issue date: 3/20/01 Section: News
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Four panelists spoke about the biomedical and ethical implications of Margaret Edson's play "Wit" after a showing of the HBO film version of the play on Monday, March 26.
Dr. Ann Boyd, professor of biology and Dean of the Graduate School, introduced the three other panelists and led the discussion. Each began by giving a brief overview of his or her work and a short presentation on some of the issues involved. Dr. Christine McHenry, a 1973 Hood alumna and a professor of pediatrics and Director of Medical Ethics at Children's Hospital Medical Center and University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, clarified what it means to be a patient in a teaching hospital, as Vivian Bearing, the main character in "Wit," was. She talked about confidentiality and the informed consent process, the "technological imperative" and how the quest for certainty may also distance doctors from their patients by reducing the patients to mere organs to be quantified by technology, and the "research imperative." McHenry distinguished between the terms "disease" and "illness": a disease simply involves the body, while an illness involves the body and the social experience of having that disease. "Curing" would then be merely physical, while "healing" is both psychological and physical.
Dr. Kristen Zarfos, a 1975 Hood alumna and physician, defined the three types of treatment centers where a patient might be hospitalized: a research center, a community-based center and a clinical-academic center, which is mainly for treatment but may also be used for research. Her concern was for patients who are underinsured or uninsured and therefore do not receive proper treatment. Zarfos referred to the Hippocratic Oath and asked, "How can we correct the crisis of people being uninsured?" Her answer was that physicians must remember that their goal is to help people, to use their skill and knowledge "to reach out and treat not only the physical person but all their needs."
Dr. Gerald Marti, a laboratory chief in the Food and Drug Administration and an attending physician in the Lymphoma and Family Studies Clinic at the National Cancer Institute at Ft. Detrick, spoke about his work, which focuses on a very specific disease: chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Except for a few successful bone marrow transplants, there is no cure for this. The life expectancy for patients is between 18 months and ten years. Marti's interaction with patients, then, is less about finding a cure than about how to deal with the illness. He mentioned a listserv set up on email for patients with this disease which provides support and information. Because this disease is likely to be found in close relatives of patients, he works also with patients' families. Marti said he once attended the wedding of a son of one of his patients. He found that seeing patients in a social setting gave a new perspective on the patient-doctor relationship: "Each member comes to know and trust what the other is thinking," he said.
Dr. Ann Boyd, professor of biology and Dean of the Graduate School, introduced the three other panelists and led the discussion. Each began by giving a brief overview of his or her work and a short presentation on some of the issues involved. Dr. Christine McHenry, a 1973 Hood alumna and a professor of pediatrics and Director of Medical Ethics at Children's Hospital Medical Center and University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, clarified what it means to be a patient in a teaching hospital, as Vivian Bearing, the main character in "Wit," was. She talked about confidentiality and the informed consent process, the "technological imperative" and how the quest for certainty may also distance doctors from their patients by reducing the patients to mere organs to be quantified by technology, and the "research imperative." McHenry distinguished between the terms "disease" and "illness": a disease simply involves the body, while an illness involves the body and the social experience of having that disease. "Curing" would then be merely physical, while "healing" is both psychological and physical.
Dr. Kristen Zarfos, a 1975 Hood alumna and physician, defined the three types of treatment centers where a patient might be hospitalized: a research center, a community-based center and a clinical-academic center, which is mainly for treatment but may also be used for research. Her concern was for patients who are underinsured or uninsured and therefore do not receive proper treatment. Zarfos referred to the Hippocratic Oath and asked, "How can we correct the crisis of people being uninsured?" Her answer was that physicians must remember that their goal is to help people, to use their skill and knowledge "to reach out and treat not only the physical person but all their needs."
Dr. Gerald Marti, a laboratory chief in the Food and Drug Administration and an attending physician in the Lymphoma and Family Studies Clinic at the National Cancer Institute at Ft. Detrick, spoke about his work, which focuses on a very specific disease: chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Except for a few successful bone marrow transplants, there is no cure for this. The life expectancy for patients is between 18 months and ten years. Marti's interaction with patients, then, is less about finding a cure than about how to deal with the illness. He mentioned a listserv set up on email for patients with this disease which provides support and information. Because this disease is likely to be found in close relatives of patients, he works also with patients' families. Marti said he once attended the wedding of a son of one of his patients. He found that seeing patients in a social setting gave a new perspective on the patient-doctor relationship: "Each member comes to know and trust what the other is thinking," he said.