Ethics Consultation

The National Center for Ethics in Health Care (NCEHC) provides consultation on questions of health care ethics to VHA leaders and field-based ethics programs on request. The Center also serves as a resource to VHA national program offices, external stakeholders, and governmental agencies outside of VHA. Generally, requests for ethics consultation from veteran patients or their families are referred to local ethics resources.

Through its ethics consultation function the NCEHC promotes ethical health care practices across VHA by providing:

• a forum for discussion of health care ethics concerns
• assistance with health care ethics problems that cannot be resolved locally
• practical advice to VHA leaders and ethics programs
• accurate information about health care ethics standards and VA policy
• access to the collective expertise of the NCEHC
• responses tailored to requesters' needs
• referral to additional ethics resources

When to Request an Ethics Consultation

What to Expect From an Ethics Consultation

NCEHC Ethics Consultants

When to Request an Ethics Consultation
An ethics consultation request is appropriate for the Center when it comes from a local ethics program, VISN, or VHA program office and requires:

• ethics analysis of ethics concerns affecting patient care
• ethics analysis on matters other than an active patient case
• review of documents from a health care ethics perspective
• clarification of health care ethics policy
• answers to questions or information about topics in health care ethics
• referral to additional ethics resources

What to Expect From an Ethics Consultation
The NCEHC receives a wide variety of requests for consultation. Less complex consultation requests can sometimes be addressed by a telephone conversation or email communication. More complex requests may require significant staff time for research, deliberation, and writing. Depending on the nature of the request, the requester will be contacted within 1-2 business days to clarify the request, inform the requester about the consultation process going forward, and establish an appropriate timeline for final response.

You may request an ethics consultation by email to vhaethics@va.gov, however please do not include patient information in your email. For urgent or time-sensitive requests, please call the NCEHC at 202-501-0364.

NCEHC Ethics Consultants
Ethics Consultations are provided by staff of the National Center for Ethics in Health Care. Difficult or complex consultation requests may involve several members of Center staff as appropriate, but the Center's primary ethics consultants are:

Ellen Fox, MD—Chief Ethics in Health Care Officer, National Center for Ethics in Health Care, Senior consultant
Kenneth A. Berkowitz, MD, FCCP—Chief, Ethics Consultation Service, Senior consultant
Barbara Chanko, RN, MBA—Senior consultant
Mary Beth Foglia, RN, MN, MA, PhD—Senior consultant