LOS ANGELES--In response to the questions being raised by new medical technologies and managed health care, City of Hope has established its Institute for Applied Health Care Ethics on its 100-acre Duarte, Calif, campus.
Coretta Scott King, widow of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., spoke at the Institute's dedication ceremony. Mrs. King is president and CEO of The King Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta.
"The Institute for Applied Health Care Ethics brings together scientists, ethics scholars, policy and legislative specialists, students, and clinicians to encourage discussion and debate on issues in clinical and health care ethics," said City of Hope President and CEO Sanford Shapero.
The Institute's first event was The Genome Imperative conference focusing on the ethical considerations surrounding genetic testing and therapy.
Dr. Shapero said that the formation of the Institute was a natural evolution for City of Hope. "By virtue of our recognized leadership in cancer research and bone marrow transplantation, we believe that the City of Hope is uniquely qualified to carry gene therapy forward into the 21st century," he said.
"But along with that commitment to solid research and medicine comes the responsibility to be held accountable for the human value elements of our industry. We have chosen to assume the lead in that position as well."
Dr. Norman T. Mendel, Rabbi, has been named the Institute's first director. He previously has served as the chairman of City of Hope's Pastoral Care Services and continues in that capacity.
