Touted as a prime tool to prevent medical error and cut health care costs, the electronic medical record (EMR) has been attacked by some as cumbersome and likely to cause — rather than prevent — errors. Professionalism requires that physicians put the interests of their patients ahead of profit-making. Dr. Brody, a bioethicist, considers how the EMR may enhance or detract from the physician-patient relationship.

Dr. Brody is director of the Institute for the Medical Humanities at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, and author of The Future of Bioethics. Previously, he was the University Distinguished Professor of Family Practice, Philosophy, and the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences at Michigan State University, East Lansing. Dr. Brody has written numerous articles on medical ethics, family medicine and the philosophy of medicine. His current research interests include the importance of an interdisciplinary humanities base for bioethics, ethical issues in primary care, community engagement in bioethics, and professional integrity in both medical practice and clinical research.

A reception will follow in the Hoyt Gallery.