Our Mission

American medicine becomes more scientific and technical day by day. As scientific technology advances and medical successes increase, sophisticated diagnostic capabilities and more effective therapy unquestionably benefit patients. Yet, ironically, even with its vast technological and scientific expertise, modern medicine risks losing sight of its primary mission - the care of the whole patient as a unique person. Technical competence is not enough to fulfill this mission. Medicine must also respect the dignity of patients, their personal values and goals, and their place within family, community and culture.

To this end, the mission of the Program in Medicine & Human Values is to serve California Pacific's patients through a broad ethics consulting process that will assist patients, families and practitioners in making difficult and emotion-laden decisions. We will coordinate the medical care delivered to a particular patient with the values and life goals of that patient. The Program will support clinical excellence and benefit all patients who come to our Medical Center, as physicians and staff are trained to treat the patient as a unique individual. The Program will also concern itself with research in biomedical ethics.

Our History

Established in March, 2004 by William S. Andereck, M.D., California Pacific’s Program in Medicine & Human Values (PMHV) grew from the shared interests and concerns of the Department of Medicine, the hospital Medical Ethics Committee and the medical and nursing staff with ethical issues in the biomedical sciences and clinical medicine. At California Pacific, we have a heightened awareness of the ethical challenges faced by the medical profession and the threats that can undermine the trust of patients and research subjects.

The California Pacific Program in Medicine & Human Values plays a unique role among ethics centers nationally, because it engages not only in traditional philosophical inquiry about ethics, but fuses it with the daily work and service of a community hospital. We know of very few institutions with programs like ours. The Program is also embarking on ground-breaking interdisciplinary research projects on moral questions arising from the complex relationships among medicine, science and society. Our research draws on and extends the scientific, clinical and educational strengths of the hospital, and aims to play a key role in shaping health policy. We are committed to exploring and promoting trustworthy and compassionate approaches to the practice of medicine in an environment of rapid socioeconomic and technological change.

Our Staff

William S. Andereck, M.D., Medical Director
William S. Andereck, M.D. has practiced General Internal Medicine in San Francisco since 1979. He received his undergraduate degree at Vanderbilt University and his medical degree from the University of Tennessee in 1974. There he was introduced to medical ethics by Drs. Edmund Pellegrino and David Thomasma. In the early 1980's he studied with Albert Jonsen, Ph.D., Professor of Bioethics at the University of California, San Francisco, whom he now co-directs California Pacific Medical Center’s Program in Medicine and Human Values with. Dr. Andereck is the Medical Director of this Program.

Albert Jonsen, Ph.D., Senior Ethics Scholar-in-Residence and Co-Director
Dr. Albert Jonsen is Emeritus Professor of Ethics in Medicine at the School of Medicine, University of Washington, where he was Chairman of the Department of Medical History and Ethics from 1987 - 1999. From 1972 to 1987, he was Chief of the Division of Medical Ethics, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco. Prior to that, he was President of the University of San Francisco, where he taught in the Departments of Philosophy and Theology. He received his doctorate from the Department of Religious Studies, Yale University, in l967. His earlier education was at Gonzaga University in Spokane and Santa Clara University in California. Professor Jonsen has written chapters in over 70 books on medicine and health care.

Thomasine Kushner, PhD
Tomi is a Clinical Professor of Bioethics and a Senior Research Fellow, Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley and editor of the Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics. She has written and edited many books, her most recent is Surviving Health Care: A Manual for Patients and Their Families from Cambridge University Press (2010). Also, each year, Tomi organizes the International Bioethics Retreat. She is married with children and lives part-time in Sausalito and in Paris.

Steve Heilig, MPH
Steve Heilig is a San Francisco-based author, editor, ethicist, epidemiologist, administrator, lecturer and researcher specializing in health and ecological issues. He is Director of Public Health and Education for the San Francisco Medical Society and director of the Community Service Foundation there, Co-Editor of the Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, co-founder and Director of the Bay Area Network of Ethics Committees, and a Senior Research Associate with Commonwealth where he is co-director of the Collaborative on Health and the Environment.

James "Wes" McGaughey
Wes, our Research Analyst, has been with the Program for over six years, directing our research as well as writing grants and serving as the primary contact for persons requesting an ethics consultation. He also administers the hospital's ethics committee and assists with overseeing the interns and fellows. Originally from Southern California, he came to us from the California State Senate and his interests are in social policy and justice.

Antonio Kruger
Antonio is a Bay Area native and has been with the Program since 2005. He is our Administrator, splitting his time between California Pacific and a local sports radio station. Antonio serves as bursar and assists Dr. Kushner with the annual International Bioethics Retreat. He is also the point person for the annual Summer Workshop in Clinical Ethics. All administrative inquiries and requests, including attempts to reach either co-director, can be made by contacting him.

Giving to the Program

Our Program is entirely funded by grants, gifts, and donations. It is because of the generosity of our donors that we have been able to help many patients and families, as well as clinicians and community members. Your help will also ensure that our program continues to make a difference in the lives of our friends, family, and patients. To make a gift to the Program, please contact the CPMC Foundation at the address and phone numbers below. Please specify that you want your gift to go to the Program in Medicine & Human Values.

California Pacific Medical Center Foundation
PO Box 7999
San Francisco, CA 94120-7999

Phone:(415) 600-4403
Fax: (415) 600-6438