Miller School Student Named to AMA Student Bioethics Committee

Belén Mora Garijo, a second-year student at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, was recently appointed to a national position on the Bioethics & Humanities Committee of the American Medical Association’s Medical Student Section.

“I am passionate about the ethical and moral dimension inherent in the practice of medicine, and look forward to making the most out of this learning opportunity,” said Mora, who serves as chair of the Policy Committee of the Miller School’s American Medical Association (AMA) chapter. “It will help me cultivate my ability to think about medical ethics issues in order to be the best doctor I can be for my patients.”

As a first-year medical student, Mora attended monthly bioethics meetings at Jackson Memorial Hospital regarding ethically complex cases. She has also been actively involved with Florida’s only syringe exchange clinic, the IDEA Needle Exchange, and has traveled repeatedly to Tallahassee to advocate for the statewide expansion of its services.

“Belen has a deep passion for digging into some of the trickiest ethics and policy issues,” said Jeffrey P. Brosco, M.D., Ph.D., professor of clinical pediatrics and director of Population Health Ethics at the UM Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy. “It’s fitting that she is already contributing to national debates on topics such as end-of-life and immigrant health.”

The AMA’s Medical Student Section (MSS) helps shape AMA policy by advocating for issues that impact medical students, physicians and patients. Each year, the MSS Governing Council appoints AMA medical student members to serve on its 13 standing committees. These AMA committees support the Governing Council in a number of ways, and responsibilities vary across the committees.

The Committee on Bioethics & Humanities (CBH) facilitates student discussion on interesting and relevant topics in medical ethics and heightens awareness of the opportunities the AMA Ethics Standards Group offers medical students.

“As a CBH member, I will offer advice and take a stance on ethically controversial resolutions submitted by medical students from all over the country regarding health policy,” said Mora, who recently hosted a national Facebook ethics discussion on transgender health and access to transition-related medical services.  “I am excited about this opportunity to review health policy from an ethical perspective.”

Tags: American Medical Association, Bioethics & Humanities Committee, Medical Student Section, Miller School of Medicine