Department of Bioethics

Mary Campbell is a staff nurse in the Cardiac Critical Care Unit at SickKids. She completed her nursing degree at Ryerson University and a Masters of Health Science in Bioethics at U of T. Her practicum and capstone work has focused on beside ethics dialogue for nurses working in cardiac critical care, reflecting her interest in the challenges bedside nurses experience working in this clinical area.

Lauren Chad is a Staff Physician in the Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics and an Assistant Professor of Paediatrics at U of T. Her academic work focuses on improving care and reducing health care disparities for children with rare genetic conditions. She is involved in numerous projects, research endeavours and quality improvement initiatives that work to enhance the understanding of the ethical issues that arise in the field of clinical genetics. She is particularly interested in the application of new technologies in health care, such as machine learning, virtual care and rapid genetic testing.

Jonathan Hellmann is a Senior Clinical Bioethics Associate and an Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics at U of T. He was the Clinical Director of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at SickKids for 17 years and joined the Bioethics Department in 2012. He completed a Masters in Bioethics and taught in the MHSc program at the Joint Centre for Bioethics for 11 years. He has an interest in ethics education, is involved in creating a neonatal ethics fellowship and is working on a book on bioethics in the NICU. He is a volunteer in the Department and contributes to all its activities, including consultation, education and research.

Andrew Helmers is a staff physician in the Department of Critical Care Medicine, and an assistant professor in the Department of Paediatrics at U of T. He completed an MSc at U of T and medical training at McGill University, followed by paediatric and paediatric critical care training at SickKids. Most recently, he completed an MHSc in Bioethics through the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at U of T. His academic work in Bioethics focuses on shared decision-making, best interests standard, end-of-life care and professional fiduciary responsibilities.

Roxanne Kirsch is a Staff Physician in the Department of Critical Care Medicine, Division of Cardiac Critical Care, and in the Department of Bioethics. She completed her Master’s degree in Biomedical Ethics at the University of Pennsylvania in 2016. Kirsch’s academic and research work focuses on the ethical and social challenges of stopping advanced therapies, end of life care, and use of non-beneficial ICU therapies in life-limiting illness, and in the development of frameworks for resource allocation.

Sarah Lord is a Staff Physician in Pediatric Medicine whose work focuses on the Paediatric Advanced Care Team (PACT) and the Complex Care Program. Lord completed her medical school and residency training at U of T and then pursued fellowship training in palliative care at SickKids. She received her MHSc in Bioethics at the Joint Centre for Bioethics at U of T. Her ethics and clinical work intersect commonly on issues related to end of life care, chronic life-prolonging technologies, and perinatal palliative care.

Kevin Weingarten is a Staff Physician with both the Paediatric Advanced Care Team (PACT) and the Division of Haematology/Oncology at SickKids. After completing his residency in paediatrics, Kevin completed his fellowship in Paediatric Haematology/Oncology at SickKids and a fellowship in Paediatric Palliative Care at Boston Children’s Hospital. Weingarten received his Masters in Bioethics at the Joint Centre for Bioethics. Weingarten is currently the Fellowship Director for Paediatric Palliative Care at SickKids.

• Zuo K, Gold A, Zlotnik Shaul R, Ho E, Zuker R. Pediatric upper extremity VCA Progress and insights. Reconstructive Transplantation and Regenerative Medicine, 2021. (forthcoming)
• Baba A, Saha A, McCradden MD, Boparai K, Zhang S, Pirouzmand F, Edelstein K, Zadeh G, Cusimano MD. Development and validation of a patient-centred meningioma-specific quality of life questionnaire (MQoL). Journal of Neurosurgery, 2021
• McCradden MD, Sarker T, Paprica P. A. Conditionally positive: a qualitative study of public perceptions about using health data for artificial intelligence research. BMJ Open, 2020.
• Cruz Rivera S, Liu X, Chan A-W, Denniston AK, Calvert MJ, and the SPIRIT-AI and CONSORT-AI Working Group. Reporting guidelines for clinical trial reports for interventions involving artificial intelligence: the SPIRIT-AI extension. *Published simultaneously in: Nature Medicine, Lancet Digital Health, BMJ, 2020.
• Liu X, Cruz Rivera S, Moher D, Calvert MJ, Denniston AK, and the SPIRIT-AI and CONSORT-AI Working Group. Reporting guidelines for clinical trial reports for interventions involving artificial intelligence: the CONSORT-AI extension. * Published simultaneously in: Nature Medicine, Lancet Digital Health, BMJ, 2020.
• McCradden MD. When is accuracy off-target? Translational Psychiatry, 2021.
• Liu X, Glocker B, McCradden MD, Denniston AK, Oakden-Rayner L. The medical algorithmic audit. Lancet Digital Health, 2021 (forthcoming)
• McCradden MD, Patel E, Chad L. The point-of-care use of a facial phenotyping tool in the Genetics Clinic: An Ethics Tête-à-Tête. American Journal of Medical Genetics, 2020.
• McCradden MD, Stephenson EA, Anderson JA. Clinical research underlies ethical adoption of healthcare artificial intelligence. Nature Medicine, 2020.
• McCradden MD, Chad L. Screening for facial differences worldwide: equity and ethics. Lancet Digital Health, 2021. [Invited Comment]

• Clinical research underlies ethical integration of healthcare artificial intelligence. McCradden M, Stephenson E. Anderson JA. Nature Medicine, 2020
• Ethical limitations of algorithmic fairness solutions. McCradden MD, Joshi S, Mazwi M, Anderson JAA. Lancet Digital Health, 2020.
• Ethical concerns around use of artificial intelligence in health care research from the perspective of patients with meningioma, caregivers and health care providers: a qualitative study. MD McCradden, A Baba, A Saha, S Ahmad, K Boparai, P Fadaiefard, Cusimano MD. CMAJ Open 8 (1), E90.
• Patient safety and quality improvement: Ethical principles for a regulatory approach to bias in healthcare machine learning. McCradden M, Joshi S, Anderson J, Mazwi M, Goldenberg A, Zlotnik Shaul R. J of Am Med Info Assoc 2020, 1-4 doi: 1093/jamia/ocaa085
• Reconciling the best interest standard with shared decision-making – introducing the shared optimum approach. Streuli JC, Anderson J, Alef-Defoe S, Bergsträsser E, Jovana J, Meyer S, Zlotnik Shaul R, Vayena E. European Journal of Pediatrics.
• Reporting guidelines for clinical trial reports for interventions involving artificial intelligence: the SPIRIT-AI extension. Cruz Rivera S, Liu X, Chan A-W, Denniston AK, Calvert MJ, and the SPIRIT-AI and CONSORT-AI Working Group [McCradden MD]. Nature Medicine, 2020.
• Reporting guidelines for clinical trial reports for interventions involving artificial intelligence: the CONSORT-AI extension. Liu X, Cruz Rivera S, Moher D, Calvert MJ, Denniston AK, and the SPIRIT-AI and CONSORT-AI Working Group [McCradden MD]. Nature Medicine, 2020.
• Sawyer JL, Mishna F, Bouffett E, Saini M, Zlotnik Shaul R. Bridging the Gap: Exploring the Impact of Hospital Isolation on Peer Relationships among Children and adolescents with a Malignant Brain Tumor. Child Adolesc Social Work J. 2021.
• Zlotnik Shaul R, Shaul D, Anderson J, McCradden M. The Gift in Precision Medicine: Unwrapping the Significance of Reciprocity and Generosity. AJOB 2021.
• Helmers A, McCradden M, Kirsch R, Zlotnik Shaul R. Cracking the Code: COVID-19 and the Future of Professional Promises. AJOB, 2020.
• McCradden MD, Anderson JA, Zlotnik Shaul R. Accountability in the Machine Learning Pipeline: The Critical Role of Research Ethics Oversight. AJOB, 2020.
• Zuo K, Gold A, Zlotnik Shaul R, Ho ES, Borschel GH, Zuker R. Pediatric Upper Extremity Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation: progress and Future. Current Transplantation Reports, 2020.

• Clinical Duty to Recontact in Genetic testing: Insights from the Safety Duty to Recall. Storey M, Zlotnik Shaul R, Meyn S, Chad L, Shuman C. Journal of Canadian Health Policy. August 2019
• Continuing the Conversation About Medical Assistance in Dying. DeMichelis C, Zlotnik Shaul R, Rapoport A. Journal of Medical Ethics. August 2019
• Discharge Against Medical Advice (DAMA) in Paediatrics: An Approach to Promote Safety and Ethics. Kavanagh A, Ostrow O, Zlotnik Shaul R. Paediatrics and Child Health. 2019; April 18. doi: 10.1093/pck/pxz052
• Dual-Role Research and Consent by Unique Specialists. Da Silva M, Zlotnik Shaul R, Simpson C, Boydell K. The American Journal of Bioethics. 2019; April 17; 19(4):46-48. doi: 10.1080/15265161.2019.1572817.
• Staying true to Rowan’s Law: how changing sport culture can realize the goal of the legislation. McCradden MD, Cusimano MD. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 2019; 1-4.
• Views from the clinic: Healthcare provider perspectives on whole genome sequencing in paediatrics. Szego MJ, Meyn MS, Shuman C, Zlotnik Shaul R, Anderson JA, Bowdin S, Monfared N, Hayeems RZ. European Journal of Medical Genetics 62 (2019) 350-356.
• What Clinicians Want: Contextualizing Explainable Machine Learning for Clinical End Use. Tonekaboni S, Joshi S, McCradden MD, Goldenberg A. Proceedings of Machine Learning Research, 2019;1-21.
• When is death in a child’s best interest? Examining decisions following severe brain injury. McCradden MD, Anderson J, Cusimano MD. JAMA Pediatrics, 2019.

• Adolescent decision-making in Canadian medical contexts: Integrating neuroscience and consent frameworks. Schwartz Y, Williams TS, Roberts SD, Hellmann, J, Zlotnik Shaul R. Paediatric and Child Health. 2018, 7 April;23(6): 374-376. doi: 10.1093/pch/pxy037.
• Medical Assistance in Dying at a paediatric hospital. DeMichelis C, Zlotnik Shaul R, Rapoport A. Journal of Medical Ethics. 2018; September 21 45:60-67. doi: 10.1136/medethics-2018-104896.
• Putting our best foot forward: Clinical, treatment-based and ethical considerations of nusinersen therapy in Canada for spinal muscular atrophy. Vukovic S, McAdam L, Zlotnik Shaul R, Amin R. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health. 2018, September 23; 55(1):18-24.doi: 10.1111/jpc.14226.
• The voices of survivors: “you will not destroy our light.” McCradden MD, Cusimano MD. British Journal of Sport Medicine, 2018.

• Enzyme replacement therapy in perinatal hypophosphatasia: case report of a negative outcome and lessons for clinical practiceCostain G, Moore AM, Munroe L, Williams A, Zlotnik Shaul R, Rockman-Greenberg C, Offringa M, Kannu P. Molecular Genetics and Metabolism Reports. 2017, November 7; 14:22-26. doi: 10.10161j.ywgwr.2017.10.006.
• Fair Innings: Equality and Children’s Health. Long K, Zlotnik Shaul R. Bioethique Online. 2017, January; 6. doi: 10.7zoz/1044619ar.
• Familiar ethical issues amplified: How members of research ethics committees describe ethical distinctions between disaster and non-disaster research. Tansey CM, Anderson JA, Boulanger RF, Eckenwiler L, Pringle J, Schwartz L, Hunt M. BMC Medical Ethics 2017 Jun 28 18(1): 44.

• Developing a bioethics curriculum for medical students from divergent geo-political regions. Greenberg RA, Kim C, Stolte H, Hellmann J, Zlotnik Shaul R, Valani R, Scolnik D. BioMed Central Medical Education. 2016, July 27; 16:193.
• Maximizing the benefit and mitigating the risks of moral hazard. Zlotnik Shaul R, Unger W. American Journal of Bioethics. 2016, June 13; 16(7):44-46.
• Parents perspectives on whole genome sequencing for their children: Qualified enthusiasm? Anderson JA, Meyn MS, Shuman C, Zlotnik Shaul R, Mantella LE, Szego MJ, Bowdin S, Monfared N, Hayeems RZ. Journal of Medical Ethics Published Online First: November 25, 2016 doi:10.1136/medethics-2016-103564.