Ethical Dilemmas in Treating the Homeless Patient

A number of challenging ethical issues are often involved in the medical treatment of the homeless population. Although some of these issues are raised in treating non-homeless patients as well, the factor of homelessness creates dilemmas that are often unique to this population. Several cases are presented illustrating these issues, together with suggestions of how to deal with the ethical dilemmas.

Kenneth Prager, MD is Professor of Clinical Medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Director, Clinical Ethics and Chairman of the Medical Ethics Committee of Columbia University Medical Center. He spent two years as a general practitioner on the Cheyenne River Sioux Indian Reservation in South Dakota after his medical internship. In addition to his pulmonary practice, Dr. Prager is heavily involved in teaching pulmonology and medical ethics to medical students, house officers and nurses. His writings on medicine and medical ethics have appeared on the Op-Ed pages of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal as well as in medical journals and textbooks.

PDF of Powerpoint Presentation: Ethical Dilemmas

Click here for Audio of Kenneth Prager's Presentation