The future of ethical decision making in health care.

As health care has become more complex in light of technological, economic, and organizational advances and changes, ethics has increasingly become a required component in decision making. This article examines four major trends: philosophical and practical problems with the place of ethics in health care, the necessity to broaden the focus of ethics committees, increase emphasis on interprofessional collaboration, and changes in the marketplace of health care delivery that will impact ethical decision making in the future.