Knowledge and capabilities, particularly of a new technology or in a new area of study, frequently develop faster than the guidelines and principles needed for practitioners to practice ethically in the new arena; this is particularly true in medicine. The blending of medicine and healthcare with e-commerce and the Internet raises many questions involving what sort of ethical conduct should be expected by practitioners and developers of the medical Internet. Some of the early pioneers in medical and healthcare Web sites pushed the ethical boundaries with questionable, even unethical, practices. Many involved with the medical Internet are now working to reestablish patient and consumer trust by establishing guidelines to determine how the fundamentals of the medical code of ethical conduct can best be adapted for the medical/healthcare Internet. Ultimately, all those involved in the creation, maintenance, and marketing of medical and healthcare Web sites should be required to adhere to a strict code of ethical conduct, one that has been fairly determined by an impartial international organization with reasonable power to regulate the code. This code could also serve as a desirable, recognizable label-of-distinction for ethical Web sites within the medical and healthcare Internet community. One challenge for those involved with the medical and healthcare Internet will be to determine what constitutes "Medical Internet Ethics" or "Healthcare Internet Ethics," since the definition of medical ethics can vary from country to country. Therefore, the emerging field of Medical/ Healthcare Internet Ethics will require careful thought and insights from an international collection of ethicists in many contributing areas. This paper is a review of the current status of the evolving field of Medical/Healthcare Internet Ethics, including proposed definitions and identification of many diverse areas that may ultimately contribute to this multidisciplinary field. The current role that medicine and health play in the growing area of Internet communication and commerce and many of the ethical challenges raised by the Internet for the medical community are explored and some possible ways to address these ethical challenges are postulated.

The admission of an infant to an NICU is an unexpected event for the parents and one often not predicted by health care professionals. This highly stressiful and overwhelming hospitalization is likely to be one of the greatest life challenges that parents of newborns face. Parents need support from NICU professionals, among others, to cope with the losses that occur in the hospital setting. This article provides NICU professionals with general information about loss and the subsequent grief response, focusing on losses from sources other than death. Common emotional and physical responses are provided so these can be recognized in affected parents. By increasing their awareness of the topics of loss and grief, health care professionals can help ensure that grieving parents get the support needed to assimilate their loss into a life forever changed.

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Supporting parents in coping with stress and loss improves the health and development of their child. This article looks at the need for monitoring the health and well-being of parents of infants in the NICU, including practical matters for health care professionals providing follow-up care. It is important to increase public and professional awareness of the grief response. Practical suggestions for coping with the NICU experience, many of them from professionals who are also parents of NICU patients, are offered for grieving parents and family members.

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