Navigating Complex Ethical Issues in Clinical Health Psychology: From Organ Transplants to Informed Choice with Historically Underserved Communities
摘要
This paper examines ethical challenges in clinical health psychology through a diversity-informed lens, drawing on insights gained from a 2025 panel discussion at the biannual meeting of the Association of Psychologists in Academic Health Centers (APAHC), held at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL. The ethically relevant outcomes from the panel centered on four key domains: (1) ethical practice with diverse patients using organ transplantation as an exemplar, (2) ethical oversight in academic medicine and research, including the roles of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), (3) the implications of grant terminations based on “gender identity” or diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) considerations, and (4) the implications of legal challenges to training a health care workforce that represents the populations they will serve. Across these domains, the panel emphasized the importance of advancing ethical practices that address persistent disparities affecting historically underserved communities.