The Ethic of Accompaniment

Taking inspiration from liberation theology and physician Paul Farmer, the lead article in the March-April 2024 issue of the Hastings Center Report offers a “cautiously idealistic” argument for surgeons to follow the ethic of accompaniment, opening themselves to the lives of patients and communities who are poor, disabled, directly harmed by racism, and otherwise marginalized. Among other work in this issue are pieces on the ethics of approaches to mental health care in the United States. One essay, for example, illuminates three main phenomena that are contributing to a rise in the number of people with serious psychiatric conditions that are untreated or given inappropriate treatment. An At Law essay criticizes recent proposals by the mayors of New York City and Portland, Oregon, for expanding the use of involuntary commitment among people experiencing homelessness.