6. A faculty member requires students rotating with her on a clerkship to assist in pregnancy terminations, regardless of the religious or philosophical beliefs of the student.
#	Response Date	Comment
1.	Tue, 3/13/07 11:00 PM	Is this a requirement of this individual faculty member or a requirement of the institution? I am not sure whether this is really a COI as contrasted with unethical demands.
2.	Tue, 3/13/07 11:26 PM	I don't believe it is a COI but more a conflict of comfort levels. The student must be given the opportunity to refuse.
3.	Tue, 3/13/07 11:27 PM	Ethical problem. Not a COI.
4.	Wed, 3/14/07 12:08 AM	It is not a coi but is probably an abuse of a student who would otherwise refuse.
5.	Wed, 3/14/07 12:05 PM	This is wrong but I do not see it as a conflict of interest
6.	Wed, 3/14/07 1:39 PM	Have no idea. Would seem to be problematic. Is abortion a case of one or are there other things that students can/should be able to opt out of learning due to personal concerns/preferences.
7.	Wed, 3/14/07 1:50 PM	If the institution requires students to learn how to do terminations, then no COI. If the institution does not require this, then serious COI
8.	Wed, 3/14/07 2:04 PM	More of a violation of rights than conflict of interest
9.	Wed, 3/14/07 2:04 PM	I am not sure whether this is strictly a conflict of interest but rather a breach of professional ethics
10.	Wed, 3/14/07 2:55 PM	Not sure I would call this a conflict of interest...it is more an ethical issue
11.	Wed, 3/14/07 3:31 PM	not a conflict of interest, but is not ethical
12.	Wed, 3/14/07 4:32 PM	I would consider this to be very serious, because the conflict is about something much more profound than money or time. Moral lines are personal and important. Asking someone to cross one is serious indeed.
13.	Wed, 3/14/07 4:38 PM	This is not a conflict of interest (there is no gain, unless the faculty member derives satisfaction from enforcing his/her beliefs on others) so much as a violation of the rights of the student
14.	Wed, 3/14/07 6:20 PM	I as part of training in the medical profession people need to be familiar with as many procedures and techniques as possible. If they are against this, then maybe they should not be in this field.
15.	Wed, 3/14/07 7:51 PM	If COI is narrowly defined as a financial COI, then none exists. If assisting in pregnancy terminations is a course requirement for all students in all such clerkships, then none exists. If there is no such requirement, and this is merely an imposition of the values of the stronger person over the weaker, then the stronger person is an asshole with a COI between the interests of the student and his/her personal interests.
16.	Thu, 3/15/07 12:57 AM	I'm not sure this fits a COI situation.
17.	Thu, 3/15/07 1:26 PM	This is an issue other than that of COI.
18.	Thu, 3/15/07 2:33 PM	I don't see this as conflict of interest, as much as bad pedagogy, with no options for respect of differing beliefs of students.
19.	Sat, 3/17/07 4:34 PM	Is the clerkship required and are there alternative practitioners available to rotate with in the event of a conflict.
20.	Sun, 3/18/07 6:29 PM	It depends on whether the student was aware of this requirement before they worked with this particular preceptor, and also whether there are other options or other preceptors that students can choose to work with.
21.	Mon, 3/19/07 12:03 AM	If the students have the opportunity to discuss their views and express their religious beliefs
22.	Mon, 3/19/07 4:32 PM	This is NOT a COI, but a broader ethical issue. Every medical school needs to have in place clear guidelines and policy to deal with ethical dilemas that represent part of the standard curriculum for their program. This includes not just assisting in pregnancy terminations, but also discontinuing life support, administering drugs (both on and off label) with potentially serious risks and hazards, assisted reproductive technologies, research or therapy involving stem cells, etc. etc. etc. The student is ultimately responsible for deciding what they will and will not do as part of their training, and this responsibility will remain with them for the remainder of their careers. It is prudent for training programs to anticipate these ethical dilemas and deal with them upfront, fairly and uniformly.
23.	Mon, 3/19/07 5:23 PM	We need to know why.
24.	Mon, 3/19/07 6:50 PM	"Assist" can be ambiguous. I think everyone should be familiar with these procedures and should have to, at the minimum, witness and learn about them. However that does not mean they must partake or perform the procedure.
25.	Wed, 3/21/07 2:34 PM	Not really a conflict of interest per se, but a student hopeful to be exempt from medical learning based on personal beliefs.
26.	Mon, 3/26/07 3:06 PM	I don't think that this is a conflict of interest, but would assume that a medical school administration would have policies re: competencies required for students and would discuss whether this competency could be addressed in a different way
27.	Thu, 3/29/07 1:34 PM	"assist" depends on student role
28.	Mon, 4/23/07 1:21 PM	I would consider this unethical and reprehensible but I am not sure I see that it is a COI.
29.	Tue, 4/24/07 1:45 PM	That's just wrong, unless it was outlined specifically in the clerkship and the clerkship is an elective.
30.	Tue, 4/24/07 6:45 PM	There is not a problem of conflict of interest. It would be inappropriate for moral reasons to require some one to witness an event they beleive is immoral but not a conflict of interest issue.
31.	Wed, 4/25/07 12:43 AM	Not a conflict of interest. More of an ethical issue.
32.	Wed, 4/25/07 1:22 PM	This is not a COI, it is a moral and ethical dilemma. It is wrong to do this, not a COI.
33.	Wed, 4/25/07 2:17 PM	If this is a required curriculum objective then this is not a conflict of interest.
34.	Wed, 4/25/07 5:27 PM	There is no COI, but an unprofessional behavior
35.	Thu, 4/26/07 12:25 AM	If the student objects to these procedures then a conflict arises
36.	Fri, 4/27/07 5:32 PM	As long as there are alternative faculty members for the students to rotate with, I don't see this as a problem. If a student CHOOSES to work with this particular faculty member, they must know that there will be required participation in ALL aspects of her practice.