David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

Contributing Writer

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH, is a general internist and a clinician-educator. His special interests include medical decision-making, “against medical advice” discharges, and ethics consultation. Dr Alfandre completed his public health training at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, followed by 2 years of service as a health educator in the Peace Corps. He graduated from Mount Sinai School of Medicine and then completed his internal medicine training at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York. He is currently a health care ethicist at the VA National Center for Ethics in Health Care and an associate professor of medicine and population health at the NYU School of Medicine. He takes care of patients as a hospitalist teaching attending at the VA New York Harbor Health Care System. His twitter handle is @alfandremd.

All articles by David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

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The Role and Responsibilities of Surrogate Decision Makers

Surrogate decision makers for a patient are obligated to make health care decisions based on what the patient would have wanted if it is known.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

November 4, 2022

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Violating Patient Confidentiality Is Sometimes Necessary

Patients trust that what they tell their doctors will remain confidential, but under certain specific circumstances, the doctors may be obligated to breach that trust.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

July 29, 2022

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It’s a Doctor’s Duty to Combat Misinformation

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored how easy it is for disreputable and non-authoritative sources to spread wrong and possibly dangerous medical information.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

May 6, 2022

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Strategies for Managing Uncertainty in Patient Care

For many health care professionals, successfully managing uncertainty means recognizing that surety is complicated and illusory and knowledge is iterative and provisional rather than definitive.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

May 19, 2021

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Moral Judgments and COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy

Whatever strategy you employ to encourage vaccinations, it is important to be respectful and empathize with your patient’s concerns and perspectives.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

March 12, 2021

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Ethical Considerations in Prescribing Unproven Therapies for COVID-19

Meeting public demand for an urgently needed effective medication quickly and safely during a pandemic involves difficult tradeoffs.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

September 9, 2020