The principles of professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of the physician, relations with patients and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the physician in patient care and interpersonal relations with patient families.

Committees established by professional societies, health facilities, or other institutions to consider decisions that have bioethical implications. The role of these committees may include consultation, education, mediation, and/or review of policies and practices. Committees that consider the ethical dimensions of patient care are ETHICS COMMITTEES, CLINICAL; committees established to protect the welfare of research subjects are ETHICS COMMITTEES, RESEARCH.

The philosophy or code pertaining to what is ideal in human character and conduct. Also, the field of study dealing with the principles of morality.

The moral obligations governing the conduct of research. Used for discussions of research ethics as a general topic.

Services provided by an individual ethicist (ETHICISTS) or an ethics team or committee (ETHICS COMMITTEES, CLINICAL) to address the ethical issues involved in a specific clinical case. The central purpose is to improve the process and outcomes of patients' care by helping to identify, analyze, and resolve ethical problems.

The identification, analysis, and resolution of moral problems that arise in the care of patients. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The principles of proper professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of nurses themselves, their patients, and their fellow practitioners, as well as their actions in the care of patients and in relations with their families.

Hospital or other institutional committees established to protect the welfare of research subjects. Federal regulations (the "Common Rule" (45 CFR 46)) mandate the use of these committees to monitor federally-funded biomedical and behavioral research involving human subjects.

The principles of proper conduct concerning the rights and duties of the professional, relations with patients or consumers and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the professional and interpersonal relations with patient or consumer families. (From Stedman, 25th ed)

Hospital or other institutional ethics committees established to consider the ethical dimensions of patient care. Distinguish from ETHICS COMMITTEES, RESEARCH, which are established to monitor the welfare of patients or healthy volunteers participating in research studies.

The moral and ethical obligations or responsibilities of institutions.

An approach to ethics that focuses on theories of the importance of general principles such as respect for autonomy, beneficence/nonmaleficence, and justice.

For-profit enterprise with relatively few to moderate number of employees and low to moderate volume of sales.

The principles of proper professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of the dentist, relations with patients and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the dentist in patient care and interpersonal relations with patient families. (From Stedman, 25th ed)

A philosophically coherent set of propositions (for example, utilitarianism) which attempts to provide general norms for the guidance and evaluation of moral conduct. (from Beauchamp and Childress, Principles of Biomedical Ethics, 4th ed)

Persons trained in philosophical or theological ethics who work in clinical, research, public policy, or other settings where they bring their expertise to bear on the analysis of ethical dilemmas in policies or cases. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

Clusters of topics that fall within the domain of BIOETHICS, the field of study concerned with value questions that arise in biomedicine and health care delivery.

The interchange of goods or commodities, especially on a large scale, between different countries or between populations within the same country. It includes trade (the buying, selling, or exchanging of commodities, whether wholesale or retail) and business (the purchase and sale of goods to make a profit). (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed, p411, p2005 & p283)

The use of systematic methods of ethical examination, such as CASUISTRY or ETHICAL THEORY, in reasoning about moral problems.

A formal process of examination of patient care or research proposals for conformity with ethical standards. The review is usually conducted by an organized clinical or research ethics committee (CLINICAL ETHICS COMMITTEES or RESEARCH ETHICS COMMITTEES), sometimes by a subset of such a committee, an ad hoc group, or an individual ethicist (ETHICISTS).

A branch of applied ethics that studies the value implications of practices and developments in life sciences, medicine, and health care.

Standards of conduct that distinguish right from wrong.

Duties that are based in ETHICS, rather than in law.

The state or quality of being kind, charitable, or beneficial. (from American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed). The ethical principle of BENEFICENCE requires producing net benefit over harm. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The use of humans as investigational subjects.

Self-directing freedom and especially moral independence. An ethical principle holds that the autonomy of persons ought to be respected. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The organization, management, and assumption of risks of a business or enterprise, usually implying an element of change or challenge and a new opportunity.

Character traits that are considered to be morally praiseworthy. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The process by which individuals internalize standards of right and wrong conduct.

The study of religion and religious belief, or a particular system or school of religious beliefs and teachings (from online Cambridge Dictionary of American English, 2000 and WordNet: An Electronic Lexical Database, 1997)

The obligations and accountability assumed in carrying out actions or ideas on behalf of others.

Voluntary authorization, by a patient or research subject, with full comprehension of the risks involved, for diagnostic or investigative procedures, and for medical and surgical treatment.

Use for articles on the investing of funds for income or profit.

The moral obligations governing the conduct of commercial or industrial enterprises.

Abstract standards or empirical variables in social life which are believed to be important and/or desirable.

Interference with the FREEDOM or PERSONAL AUTONOMY of another person, with justifications referring to the promotion of the person's good or the prevention of harm to the person. (from Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, 1995); more generally, not allowing a person to make decisions on his or her own behalf.

The privacy of information and its protection against unauthorized disclosure.

The state or condition of being a human individual accorded moral and/or legal rights. Criteria to be used to determine this status are subject to debate, and range from the requirement of simply being a human organism to such requirements as that the individual be self-aware and capable of rational thought and moral agency.

Medical philosophy is a branch of philosophy that deals with the concepts, values, and nature of medicine, including its ethical implications, epistemological foundations, and societal impact, aimed at informing and improving medical practice, research, and education.

The composition of a committee; the state or status of being a member of a committee.

Fundamental claims of patients, as expressed in statutes, declarations, or generally accepted moral principles. (Bioethics Thesaurus) The term is used for discussions of patient rights as a group of many rights, as in a hospital's posting of a list of patient rights.

A love or pursuit of wisdom. A search for the underlying causes and principles of reality. (Webster, 3d ed)

A situation in which an individual might benefit personally from official or professional actions. It includes a conflict between a person's private interests and official responsibilities in a position of trust. The term is not restricted to government officials. The concept refers both to actual conflict of interest and the appearance or perception of conflict.

An interactive process whereby members of a community are concerned for the equality and rights of all.

The philosophical view that conceptions of truth and moral values are not absolute but are relative to the persons or groups holding them. (from American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed)

The science or philosophy of law. Also, the application of the principles of law and justice to health and medicine.

Application of marketing principles and techniques to maximize the use of health care resources.

Research that involves the application of the natural sciences, especially biology and physiology, to medicine.

The organization and operation of the business aspects of a dental practice.

Persons who are enrolled in research studies or who are otherwise the subjects of research.

The rights of the individual to cultural, social, economic, and educational opportunities as provided by society, e.g., right to work, right to education, and right to social security.

The intrinsic moral worth ascribed to a living being. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The term "United States" in a medical context often refers to the country where a patient or study participant resides, and is not a medical term per se, but relevant for epidemiological studies, healthcare policies, and understanding differences in disease prevalence, treatment patterns, and health outcomes across various geographic locations.

The principles of proper professional conduct concerning the rights and duties of the pharmacist, relations with patients and fellow practitioners, as well as actions of the pharmacist in health care and interpersonal relations with patient families. (From Stedman, 25th ed)

Exercise of governmental authority to control conduct.

The process by which decisions are made in an institution or other organization.

Societal or individual decisions about the equitable distribution of available resources.

A course of study offered by an educational institution.

The branch of philosophy that treats of first principles, including ontology (the nature of existence or being) and cosmology (the origin and structure of the universe). (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Travel to another country for the purpose of medical treatment.

Failing to prevent death from natural causes, for reasons of mercy by the withdrawal or withholding of life-prolonging treatment.

The purposes, missions, and goals of an individual organization or its units, established through administrative processes. It includes an organization's long-range plans and administrative philosophy.

Violation of laws, regulations, or professional standards.

Theoretical representations and constructs that describe or explain the structure and hierarchy of relationships and interactions within or between formal organizational entities or informal social groups.

The act or practice of killing or allowing death from natural causes, for reasons of mercy, i.e., in order to release a person from incurable disease, intolerable suffering, or undignified death. (from Beauchamp and Walters, Contemporary Issues in Bioethics, 5th ed)

Economic sector concerned with the provision, distribution, and consumption of health care services and related products.

Promotion and protection of the rights of patients, frequently through a legal process.

The obtaining and management of funds for institutional needs and responsibility for fiscal affairs.

A shared service which combines the purchasing power of individual organizations or facilities in order to obtain lower prices for equipment and supplies. (From Health Care Terms, 2nd ed)

Differences of opinion or disagreements that may arise, for example, between health professionals and patients or their families, or against a political regime.

*My apologies, but "Restaurants" are not a medical term and do not have a medical definition.*

Health services for employees, usually provided by the employer at the place of work.

The rights of individuals to act and make decisions without external constraints.

An international agreement of the World Medical Association which offers guidelines for conducting experiments using human subjects. It was adopted in 1962 and revised by the 18th World Medical Assembly at Helsinki, Finland in 1964. Subsequent revisions were made in 1975, 1983, 1989, and 1996. (From Encyclopedia of Bioethics, rev ed, 1995)

Procedures, strategies, and theories of planning.

Withholding or withdrawal of a particular treatment or treatments, often (but not necessarily) life-prolonging treatment, from a patient or from a research subject as part of a research protocol. The concept is differentiated from REFUSAL TO TREAT, where the emphasis is on the health professional's or health facility's refusal to treat a patient or group of patients when the patient or the patient's representative requests treatment. Withholding of life-prolonging treatment is usually indexed only with EUTHANASIA, PASSIVE, unless the distinction between withholding and withdrawing treatment, or the issue of withholding palliative rather than curative treatment, is discussed.

The quality or state of relating to or affecting two or more nations. (After Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed)

Any enterprise centered on the processing, assembly, production, or marketing of a line of products, services, commodities, or merchandise, in a particular field often named after its principal product. Examples include the automobile, fishing, music, publishing, insurance, and textile industries.

The promotion and maintenance of physical and mental health in the work environment.

Revealing of information, by oral or written communication.

Activities concerned with governmental policies, functions, etc.

Use for general articles concerning medical education.

The capacity of an organization, institution, or business to produce desired results with a minimum expenditure of energy, time, money, personnel, materiel, etc.

A course or method of action selected, usually by an organization, institution, university, society, etc., from among alternatives to guide and determine present and future decisions and positions on matters of public interest or social concern. It does not include internal policy relating to organization and administration within the corporate body, for which ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION is available.

Descriptions and evaluations of specific health care organizations.

Human experimentation that is not intended to benefit the subjects on whom it is performed. Phase I drug studies (CLINICAL TRIALS, PHASE I AS TOPIC) and research involving healthy volunteers are examples of nontherapeutic human experimentation.

Those individuals engaged in research.

That segment of commercial enterprise devoted to the design, development, and manufacture of chemical products for use in the diagnosis and treatment of disease, disability, or other dysfunction, or to improve function.

Activity involved in transfer of goods from producer to consumer or in the exchange of services.

The application of scientific knowledge to practical purposes in any field. It includes methods, techniques, and instrumentation.

Accountability and responsibility to another, enforceable by civil or criminal sanctions.

Members of a religious denomination founded in the United States during the late 19th century in which active evangelism is practiced, the imminent approach of the millennium is preached, and war and organized government authority in matters of conscience are strongly opposed (from American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed). Jehovah's Witnesses generally refuse blood transfusions and other blood-based treatments based on religious belief.

The educational process of instructing.

The study, based on direct observation, use of statistical records, interviews, or experimental methods, of actual practices or the actual impact of practices or policies.

The process of making a selective intellectual judgment when presented with several complex alternatives consisting of several variables, and usually defining a course of action or an idea.

Critical and exhaustive investigation or experimentation, having for its aim the discovery of new facts and their correct interpretation, the revision of accepted conclusions, theories, or laws in the light of newly discovered facts, or the practical application of such new or revised conclusions, theories, or laws. (Webster, 3d ed)

Human experimentation that is intended to benefit the subjects on whom it is performed.

The reporting of observed or suspected PROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT or incompetence to appropriate authorities or to the public.

The effort of two or more parties to secure the business of a third party by offering, usually under fair or equitable rules of business practice, the most favorable terms.

That portion of total HEALTH CARE COSTS borne by an individual's or group's employing organization.

The use of animals as investigational subjects.

A person who has not attained the age at which full civil rights are accorded.

The interactions between representatives of institutions, agencies, or organizations.

Business management of medical, dental and veterinary practices that may include capital financing, utilization management, and arrangement of capitation agreements with other parties.

Interaction between research personnel and research subjects.

Financial support of research activities.

The interrelationship of medicine and religion.

A school of thought and set of moral, ethical, and political teachings usually considered to be founded by Confucius in 6th-5th century B.C. China. (from Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, 1995)

The psychological relations between the dentist and patient.

Exploitation through misrepresentation of the facts or concealment of the purposes of the exploiter.

The capability to perform the duties of one's profession generally, or to perform a particular professional task, with skill of an acceptable quality.

Non-frontal low-pressure systems over tropical or sub-tropical waters with organized convection and definite pattern of surface wind circulation.

The function of directing or controlling the actions or attitudes of an individual or group with more or less willing acquiescence of the followers.

Organizations which are not operated for a profit and may be supported by endowments or private contributions.

A systematic statement of policy rules or principles. Guidelines may be developed by government agencies at any level, institutions, professional societies, governing boards, or by convening expert panels. The text may be cursive or in outline form but is generally a comprehensive guide to problems and approaches in any field of activity. For guidelines in the field of health care and clinical medicine, PRACTICE GUIDELINES AS TOPIC is available.

Statistical models of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services, as well as of financial considerations. For the application of statistics to the testing and quantifying of economic theories MODELS, ECONOMETRIC is available.

Significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real gross domestic product, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales. (National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, www.nber.org/cycles.html, accessed 4/23/2009)

Exclusive legal rights or privileges applied to inventions, plants, etc.

Planning, organizing, and administering all activities related to personnel.

That distinct portion of the institutional, industrial, or economic structure of a country that is controlled or owned by non-governmental, private interests.

Intentional falsification of scientific data by presentation of fraudulent or incomplete or uncorroborated findings as scientific fact.

Voluntary groups of people representing diverse interests in the community such as hospitals, businesses, physicians, and insurers, with the principal objective to improve health care cost effectiveness.

The religion of the Jews characterized by belief in one God and in the mission of the Jews to teach the Fatherhood of God as revealed in the Hebrew Scriptures. (Webster, 3d ed)

Spread and adoption of inventions and techniques from one geographic area to another, from one discipline to another, or from one sector of the economy to another. For example, improvements in medical equipment may be transferred from industrial countries to developing countries, advances arising from aerospace engineering may be applied to equipment for persons with disabilities, and innovations in science arising from government research are made available to private enterprise.

Communication, in the sense of cross-fertilization of ideas, involving two or more academic disciplines (such as the disciplines that comprise the cross-disciplinary field of bioethics, including the health and biological sciences, the humanities, and the social sciences and law). Also includes problems in communication stemming from differences in patterns of language usage in different academic or medical disciplines.

The act or practice of killing for reasons of mercy, i.e., in order to release a person or animal from incurable disease, intolerable suffering, or undignified death. (from Beauchamp and Walters, Contemporary Issues in Bioethics, 5th ed)

A course or method of action selected to guide and determine present and future decisions.

The obtaining and management of funds for hospital needs and responsibility for fiscal affairs.

An organizational enterprise between a public sector agency, federal, state or local, and a private sector entity. Skills and assets of each sector are shared to deliver a service or facility for the benefit or use of the general public.

Great Britain is not a medical term, but a geographical name for the largest island in the British Isles, which comprises England, Scotland, and Wales, forming the major part of the United Kingdom.

Systematic gathering of data for a particular purpose from various sources, including questionnaires, interviews, observation, existing records, and electronic devices. The process is usually preliminary to statistical analysis of the data.

The circulation or wide dispersal of information.

The interaction of persons or groups of persons representing various nations in the pursuit of a common goal or interest.

The absence of a useful purpose or useful result in a diagnostic procedure or therapeutic intervention. The situation of a patient whose condition will not be improved by treatment or instances in which treatment preserves permanent unconsciousness or cannot end dependence on intensive medical care. (From Ann Intern Med 1990 Jun 15;112(12):949)

An ethical system which emphasizes human values and the personal worth of each individual, as well as concern for the dignity and freedom of humankind.

Innovation and improvement of the health care system by reappraisal, amendment of services, and removal of faults and abuses in providing and distributing health services to patients. It includes a re-alignment of health services and health insurance to maximum demographic elements (the unemployed, indigent, uninsured, elderly, inner cities, rural areas) with reference to coverage, hospitalization, pricing and cost containment, insurers' and employers' costs, pre-existing medical conditions, prescribed drugs, equipment, and services.

Organizations composed of members with common interests and whose professions may be similar.

Health insurance plans for employees, and generally including their dependents, usually on a cost-sharing basis with the employer paying a percentage of the premium.

Branch of medicine concerned with the prevention and control of disease and disability, and the promotion of physical and mental health of the population on the international, national, state, or municipal level.

The organization and operation of the business aspects of a physician's practice.

The aggregate business enterprise of agriculture, manufacture, and distribution related to tobacco and tobacco-derived products.

Informed consent given by someone other than the patient or research subject.

The process of formulating, improving, and expanding educational, managerial, or service-oriented work plans (excluding computer program development).

Amounts charged to the patient as payer for health care services.

Legal guarantee protecting the individual from attack on personal liberties, right to fair trial, right to vote, and freedom from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin. (from http://www.usccr.gov/ accessed 1/31/2003)

The point at which religious ensoulment or PERSONHOOD is considered to begin.

Guideline for determining when it is morally permissible to perform an action to pursue a good end with knowledge that the action will also bring about bad results. It generally states that, in cases where a contemplated action has such double effect, the action is permissible only if: it is not wrong in itself; the bad result is not intended; the good result is not a direct causal result of the bad result; and the good result is "proportionate to" the bad result. (from Solomon, "Double Effect," in Becker, The Encyclopedia of Ethics, 1992)

The concept concerned with all aspects of providing and distributing health services to a patient population.

Management of the internal organization of the hospital.

Attitudes of personnel toward their patients, other professionals, toward the medical care system, etc.

Hospital department which is responsible for the administration and provision of x-ray diagnostic and therapeutic services.

The cognitive and affective processes which constitute an internalized moral governor over an individual's moral conduct.

Garbage, refuse, or sludge, or other discarded materials from a wastewater treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, and air pollution control facility that include solid, semi-solid, or contained material. It does not include materials dissolved in domestic sewage, irrigation return flows, or industrial discharges.

Property, such as patents, trademarks, and copyright, that results from creative effort. The Patent and Copyright Clause (Art. 1, Sec. 8, cl. 8) of the United States Constitution provides for promoting the progress of science and useful arts by securing for limited times to authors and inventors, the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries. (From Black's Law Dictionary, 5th ed, p1014)

The attitude of a significant portion of a population toward any given proposition, based upon a measurable amount of factual evidence, and involving some degree of reflection, analysis, and reasoning.

Advanced technology that is costly, requires highly skilled personnel, and is unique in its particular application. Includes innovative, specialized medical/surgical procedures as well as advanced diagnostic and therapeutic equipment.

The guidelines and policy statements set forth by the editor(s) or editorial board of a publication.

The largest country in North America, comprising 10 provinces and three territories. Its capital is Ottawa.

The expected function of a member of a particular profession.

One of the principal schools of medical philosophy in ancient Greece and Rome. It developed in Alexandria between 270 and 220 B.C., the only one to have any success in reviving the essentials of the Hippocratic concept. The Empiricists declared that the search for ultimate causes of phenomena was vain, but they were active in endeavoring to discover immediate causes. The "tripod of the Empirics" was their own chance observations (experience), learning obtained from contemporaries and predecessors (experience of others), and, in the case of new diseases, the formation of conclusions from other diseases which they resembled (analogy). Empiricism enjoyed sporadic continuing popularity in later centuries up to the nineteenth. (From Castiglioni, A History of Medicine, 2d ed, p186; Dr. James H. Cassedy, NLM History of Medicine Division)

Organizations which assume the financial responsibility for the risks of policyholders.

Educational institutions for individuals specializing in the field of dentistry.

The fundamental dispositions and traits of humans. (Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed)

The enactment of laws and ordinances and their regulation by official organs of a nation, state, or other legislative organization. It refers also to health-related laws and regulations in general or for which there is no specific heading.

The condition in which reasonable knowledge regarding risks, benefits, or the future is not available.

The science concerned with problems of radiation protection relevant to reducing or preventing radiation exposure, and the effects of ionizing radiation on humans and their environment.

The business and managerial aspects of pharmacy in its broadest sense.

Predetermined sets of questions used to collect data - clinical data, social status, occupational group, etc. The term is often applied to a self-completed survey instrument.

The intentional infliction of physical or mental suffering upon an individual or individuals, including the torture of animals.

A plan for collecting and utilizing data so that desired information can be obtained with sufficient precision or so that an hypothesis can be tested properly.

Manipulation of the behavior of persons or animals by biomedical, physical, psychological, or social means, including for nontherapeutic reasons.

The interaction of two or more persons or organizations directed toward a common goal which is mutually beneficial. An act or instance of working or acting together for a common purpose or benefit, i.e., joint action. (From Random House Dictionary Unabridged, 2d ed)

"The business or profession of the commercial production and issuance of literature" (Webster's 3d). It includes the publisher, publication processes, editing and editors. Production may be by conventional printing methods or by electronic publishing.

The level of governmental organization and function at the national or country-wide level.

Committees established to review interim data and efficacy outcomes in clinical trials. The findings of these committees are used in deciding whether a trial should be continued as designed, changed, or terminated. Government regulations regarding federally-funded research involving human subjects (the "Common Rule") require (45 CFR 46.111) that research ethics committees reviewing large-scale clinical trials monitor the data collected using a mechanism such as a data monitoring committee. FDA regulations (21 CFR 50.24) require that such committees be established to monitor studies conducted in emergency settings.

The combining of administrative and organizational resources of two or more health care facilities.

Care provided patients requiring extraordinary therapeutic measures in order to sustain and prolong life.

Decisions, usually developed by government policymakers, for determining present and future objectives pertaining to the health care system.

Value of all final goods and services produced in a country in one year.

Institutional systems consisting of more than one health facility which have cooperative administrative arrangements through merger, affiliation, shared services, or other collective ventures.

Informed consent given by a parent on behalf of a minor or otherwise incompetent child.

Sets of beliefs on the nature of the universe or Man.

Unlawful act of taking property.

The state that distinguishes organisms from inorganic matter, manifested by growth, metabolism, reproduction, and adaptation. It includes the course of existence, the sum of experiences, the mode of existing, or the fact of being. Over the centuries inquiries into the nature of life have crossed the boundaries from philosophy to biology, forensic medicine, anthropology, etc., in creative as well as scientific literature. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed; Dr. James H. Cassedy, NLM History of Medicine Division)

A legal concept for individuals who are designated to act on behalf of persons who are considered incapable of acting in their own behalf, e.g., minors and persons found to be not mentally competent.

A system of government in which there is free and equal participation by the people in the political decision-making process.

Individuals licensed to practice medicine.

The legal relation between an entity (individual, group, corporation, or-profit, secular, government) and an object. The object may be corporeal, such as equipment, or completely a creature of law, such as a patent; it may be movable, such as an animal, or immovable, such as a building.

Place or physical location of work or employment.

The period of medical education in a medical school. In the United States it follows the baccalaureate degree and precedes the granting of the M.D.

Truthful revelation of information, specifically when the information disclosed is likely to be psychologically painful ("bad news") to the recipient (e.g., revelation to a patient or a patient's family of the patient's DIAGNOSIS or PROGNOSIS) or embarrassing to the teller (e.g., revelation of medical errors).

Coexistence of numerous distinct ethnic, racial, religious, or cultural groups within one social unit, organization, or population. (From American Heritage Dictionary, 2d college ed., 1982, p955)

The application of industrial management practice to systematically maintain and improve organization-wide performance. Effectiveness and success are determined and assessed by quantitative quality measures.

Experimentation on, or using the organs or tissues from, a human or other mammalian conceptus during the prenatal stage of development that is characterized by rapid morphological changes and the differentiation of basic structures. In humans, this includes the period from the time of fertilization to the end of the eighth week after fertilization.

The ability to understand the nature and effect of the act in which the individual is engaged. (From Black's Law Dictionary, 6th ed).

City in Orleans Parish (county), largest city in state of LOUISIANA. It is located between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain.

The study of natural phenomena by observation, measurement, and experimentation.

Works about pre-planned studies of the safety, efficacy, or optimum dosage schedule (if appropriate) of one or more diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques selected according to predetermined criteria of eligibility and observed for predefined evidence of favorable and unfavorable effects. This concept includes clinical trials conducted both in the U.S. and in other countries.

Societies whose membership is limited to physicians.

The fraudulent misrepresentation of the diagnosis and treatment of disease.

A publication issued at stated, more or less regular, intervals.

Passing off as one's own the work of another without credit.