David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

Contributing Writer

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH, is a general internist and a clinician-educator. His special interests include medical decision-making, “against medical advice” discharges, and ethics consultation. Dr Alfandre completed his public health training at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, followed by 2 years of service as a health educator in the Peace Corps. He graduated from Mount Sinai School of Medicine and then completed his internal medicine training at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York. He is currently a health care ethicist at the VA National Center for Ethics in Health Care and an associate professor of medicine and population health at the NYU School of Medicine. He takes care of patients as a hospitalist teaching attending at the VA New York Harbor Health Care System. His twitter handle is @alfandremd.

All articles by David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

Practice Management

Elevator Ethics: No Talking About Patients

Health care providers should avoid talking about specific patients even when members of the public or patients are not present.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

August 18, 2023

Practice Management

Helping Clinicians Cope With Moral Distress Can Improve Patient Care

A central objective of addressing moral distress is to permit clinicians to effectively perform their professional functions and thus better help patients.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

February 17, 2023

Axial Spondyloarthritis

How an Ethics Consultant Can Help Resolve Conflicts

Ethics consultants begin by identifying and clarifying the conflict to ensure it is related to ethics.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

October 28, 2022

Practice Management

It’s a Doctor’s Duty to Combat Misinformation

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored how easy it is for disreputable and non-authoritative sources to spread wrong and possibly dangerous medical information.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

May 12, 2022

Practice Management

Physicians Must Help Patients Evaluate Risks vs Benefits

When patients are able to articulate their beliefs, it can help them move from making what may have been an unconscious choice into a conscious one.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

February 3, 2022

Practice Management

The Importance of Equity in Addressing Disparities in Health Care

Equality assures that everyone receives the same thing, but equity assures that everyone gets what they need.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

November 15, 2021

Practice Management

Strategies for Managing Uncertainty in Patient Care

For many health care professionals, successfully managing uncertainty means recognizing that surety is complicated and illusory and knowledge is iterative and provisional rather than definitive.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

May 7, 2021

General Rheumatology

Moral Judgments and COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy

Whatever strategy you employ to encourage vaccinations, it is important to be respectful and empathize with your patient’s concerns and perspectives.

David Alfandre, MD, MSPH

May 3, 2021