Helping Make Important Healthcare Decisions
The goal of the committee is to help our patients, caregivers and families make important decisions by listening to your problems and assisting you in gathering information about the situation that you are experiencing. Our primary focus is on moral, legal, cultural, spiritual and personal issues that are of concern to you.
You may benefit from the help of the ethics committee if after working with your doctor or other caregivers to sort out the ethical concerns you still are unsure if you are making the "right" decision. We are available to consult with you, your family, your specified health care agent or authorized representative and your doctor.
Issues addressed may pertain to stopping treatment, caring for patients who do not have the capacity to participate in making end-of-life care decisions, reproductive choices and interpreting living wills.
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Who We Are
The Committee is made up of professionals from various fields including doctors, nurses, chaplains, an ethicist, patient/family members, lawyers, community representatives, social workers, and senior administration. Committee members have experience in helping patients, their families and medical staff with difficult questions that may arise during a patient's treatment. Utilizing the services of the Bioethics Committee is completely free of charge.
| Hospital Staff |
Community Volunteers |
| Mara G. Coyle, MD, Chairperson Neonatologist |
Susan Jensen, Community Representative |
| Carol Wheeler, MD, Gynecologist and Reproductive Endocrinologist |
Susan Pakula, MD, Anchor Pediatrics |
| Angeleen Peters-Lewis, Senior Vice President, Chief Nursing Officer |
Richard Sherman, J.D., Partner, Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP |
| Noreen Mattis, RN, M.Ed., Director Patient and Family Centered Care |
Rebecca Spencer, Rev. |
| Carmen Monzon, MD, Psychiatrist |
Howard Mintz, MD |
| Barbara O'Brien, MD, Maternal Fetal Medicine Staff and Director of Perinatal Genetics |
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| Kelly Pagidas, MD, Reproductive Endocrinologist |
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| Rev. Caroline Patterson, WIH Chaplain, Coordinator of Pastoral Care |
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| Sharon L. Vessella, MSW, LICSW Clinical Social Worker |
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| Richard Ohnmacht, MD, Pediatrics |
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| Elizabeth Fecteau, JD, Risk Management |
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| Mary Catherine DeRosa, MD, Community Representative |
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Uzma Sharif, MD, Community Representative
Erica Hardy, MD, Community Representative |
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| When and How to Contact Us |
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You may benefit from the help of the Bioethics committee if after working with your doctor or other caregivers to sort out the ethical concerns you still are unsure if you are making the "right" decision.
The committee has dealt with many issues over the years including limitations of care for newborns and adults, gender selection, and gestational carrier treatment. We are available to help you, your family, your health care providers or anyone else you would like involved in the decisions regarding your care.
Patients or families who wish to consult the Bioethics Committee on specific issues may make a request through their physician, nurse or social worker, or by contacting the Medical Staff Office at 401-274-1122, ext. 2342.
Referral Form
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| Frequently Asked Questions |
Advances in technology have given us so many new choices that sometimes the decisions we face are very complex and difficult to make. In addition, the people involved in our care may not always agree about what steps to take. That's when the Bioethics Committee can help.
Click here for a list of our most frequently asked questions. |
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