Can physicians ethically participate in interrogation of prisoners and
detainees—and if so, when and under what conditions?
Those are questions the AMA will answer in a report requested by the
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) and the American
Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) at the interim meeting of the House of Delegates
in Dallas in November.
In the wake of controversy over reports of participation by
physicians—including psychiatrists—in the interrogation of
detainees at Guantanamo Naval Base and in other parts of the world, the AMA's
Council on Ethical Affairs will author a report to "delineate clearly
for physicians the boundaries of ethical practice with respect to
participation in the interrogation of prisoners and detainees."
A resolution calling for the report was introduced by AACAP and AAP with
support from APA's Section Council on Psychiatry. The resolution was widely
supported by other physicians in the house and was adopted without debate.
"The members of the section council felt strongly that this was an
important ethical issue for all physicians that demanded attention from the
House of Delegates," said John McIntyre, M.D., chair of the section
council. "It is vital for physicians to have clear guidelines with
respect to interrogation from the AMA, the nation's leading authority on the
ethics of medical practice."
The resolution calls for "input from all appropriate
stakeholders" in the drafting of the report, and McIntyre said
psychiatrists would be among them. During reference committee hearings on the
resolution, Brig. Gen. David Young, M.D., a delegate from the U.S. Air Force,
spoke in support of the resolution and offered the Air Force's help in
drafting the report.FIG1
APA Trustee David Fassler, M.D., who introduced the resolution and is an
AACAP representative to the AMA, noted in remarks during reference committee
hearings that the APA Board of Trustees had approved a policy statement
asserting that involvement in interrogations was incompatible with a
psychiatrist's ethical obligations (Psychiatric News, November 4)."
Personally, I have serious concerns about the nature of physician
participation described in many of the recent reports," Fassler said."
However, I recognize that there are a variety of perspectives on this
issue, which is why I feel the AMA is the appropriate venue for a thoughtful,
inclusive, and comprehensive analysis of this complex and controversial
topic."
APA Vice President Nada Stotland, M.D., told delegates at the meeting that
the statement on the subject released earlier this year by the American
Psychological Association—a statement granting wider latitude to the
participation of psychologists in interrogation of detainees—garnered"
considerable negative media attention."
"The all-important public trust in the medical profession depends on
our acceptance of the precept of primum non nocere," she said.
APA leaders had begun examining the issue of psychiatric participation in
interrogation even before news of the Guantanamo interrogations became public;
the process was accelerated last summer when the New England Journal of
Medicine reported in its July 7 issue that a psychiatrist and a
psychologist had each headed a Behavioral Science Consultation Team (BSCT,
pronounced "biscuit") to assist interrogators in questioning
Guantanamo detainees (Psychiatric News, August 19).
In related news, an October 17 letter to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) from
APA expressed support for McCain's amendment to the Defense Department
appropriations bill prohibiting cruel and degrading treatment of detainees."
As a physician organization we are concerned that interrogations take
into consideration the psychiatric health of prisoners and their physical
well-being," wrote APA President Steven Sharfstein, M.D. "It is
particularly important that psychiatrists and other mental health
professionals not be put in the position of taking action that compromises
confidential patient information."
In other actions relevant to psychiatry, the AMA house approved a
resolution urging the federal government to eliminate the current exclusion of
benzodiazepines and drugs for substance use disorders in formularies under the
new Medicare Part D program. The resolution urged inclusion of
benzodiazepines, methadone, buprenorphine, acamprosate, disulfiram, and
naltrexone "for all clinically appropriate conditions."
That resolution was approved with support from physicians in other
specialties. "I take care of patients with terminal diseases who often
require these medications," said internist Melvyn Sterling, M.D., of
Orange, Calif. "Methadone is ideal for neuropathic pain, and
benzodiazepines are also often necessary for seizure disorders. There are many
conditions other than psychiatric for which these medications are
important."
Finally, the house approved a resolution by AACAP, AAP, and the American
Academy of Family Physicians urging AMA advocacy for the continuation of the
Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program under
Medicaid.
Carol Berkowitz, M.D., of AAP reminded delegates that the EPSDT program,
enacted 40 years ago, was "the backbone of the Medicaid program"
providing diagnosis and treatment for 26 million children.
"Now as EPSDT seems threatened by proposals in the House of
Representatives, and the Medicaid Advisory Commission is seeking ways to
reform Medicaid and cut costs, we feel the value and importance of EPSDT needs
to be affirmed and supported," she said.
Jeremy Veenstra-Vanderweele, M.D., the AACAP delegate to the AMA's Resident
Physician Section and a resident member of the psychiatry section council,
also spoke in support of the resolution.
"Neglecting preventive care as a way to save money is
misguided," he said. "I think there is a tendency in this country
to neglect the most vulnerable populations when money is tight. But we need to
take care of our children with medical and mental illnesses."
The resolution on interrogations is posted online at<www.psych.org/downloads/AMAResolution1Nov05.pdf>.▪