The Ethics Writings of Roger A. Brumback, MD

Abstract

Roger A. Brumback, MD (1953-2013), a renaissance man, shared with the world his knowledge and opinions on many subjects. Thus, it should come as no surprise that ethics did not escape Dr Brumback's consideration. Reading Dr Brumback's vitae, I came across several publications that afford insights into topics that tugged at his moral fabric. Dr Brumback was a steadfast defender of the scientific method. Reading his commentaries, one gets the sense that Dr Brumback felt personally attacked when quackery challenged science. In addition, and as long-time Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Child Neurology, Dr Brumback considered it a personal affront every time a paper he published, or for that matter published by any scientific journal, had to be retracted or corrected. In the following paragraphs, I review a selection of Dr Brumback's ethics writings.