Research Faculty

Robert D. Troug

Department Anaesthesia
Hospital Title Professor of Medical Ethics
& Anaesthesia (Pediatrics)
Academic Title Director of Clinical Ethics
Harvard Medical School
Phone 617-355-7327
Fax 617-730-0453
Email Robert.Troug@childrens.harvard.edu
Location Childrens Hospital Boston
Div. Critical Care Medicine
300 Longwood Ave.
Bader 634
Boston, MA 02115

Research Overview

Dr. Troug's research focuses on questions in biomedical ethics, particularly those that arise in the care of critically ill patients.

Research Goals:

  • Improving end-of-life care in the pediatric ICU (see grant description below)
  • Enhancing the capacity of clinicians to engage in difficult conversations in healthcare (see grant description below)
  • Addressing ethical dilemmas that arise around informed consent, organ transplantation, medical futility, rationing, stem cell research, and end-of-life care.

Key Publications

  • Truog RD, Campbell ML, Curtis JR et al. Recommendations for end-of-life care in the intensive care unit: a consensus statement by the American Academy of Critical Care Medicine. Crit Care Med 2008; 36(3):953-963.
     
  • Truog RD. Consent for organ donation--balancing conflicting ethical obligations. N Engl J Med 2008; 358(12):1209-1211.
     
  • Gawande A, Denno DW, Truog RD, Waisel D. Physicians and execution--highlights from a discussion of lethal injection. N Engl J Med 2008; 358(5):448-451.
     
  • Browning DM, Meyer EC, Truog RD, Solomon MZ. Difficult conversations in health care: cultivating relational learning to address the hidden curriculum. Acad Med 2007; 82(9):905-913.

Grants, Awards and Honors

  • Toward Optimal Palliative Care in the PICU Setting 2005-2010 Funder: NIH/NINR R01 NR09298-01A1 $2,200,000 Role: Principle Investigator Description: This project will develop tools to evaluate the quality of end-of-life care in the pediatric ICU. These tools will then be used to investigate both qualitative and quantitative aspects of fifty consecutive deaths occurring in each of eight geographically dispersed pediatric ICUs, from the perspectives of parents, patients, and clinicians.
     
  • Program to Enhance Relational and 2007-2008 Communication Skills in situations of $300,000 Medical Error and Conflict Funder: Harvard Risk Management Foundation Role: Principle Investigator Description: Project to develop a communication training program for clinicians at the Harvard teaching hospitals to improve their skills at dealing with medical error and conflict.
     
  • The Initiative for Pediatric Palliative Care: Enhancing 2003-present Family-Centered Care for Children Living with Life- $2,432,000 Threatening Conditions Funder: A consortium of foundations, including the Nathan Cummings Foundation, the Open Society Institute, the Aetna Foundation, and the Argosy Foundation. Role: Co-Investigator Description: Project to study how decisions are made about the use of life-sustaining technologies in children, followed by the design of a 25-hour curriculum, implementation of quality improvements in seven leading children's hospitals, face-to-face retreats ongoing across the nation, and an impact study to determine the impact of the retreats on clinical practice. More than 1700 participants have completed the training.