Dr Robert D. Orr, M.D. is:

* Director of Clinical Ethics

Loma Linda University Medical Center, and

* Professor of Family Medicine

Loma Linda University School of Medicine

Loma Linda, California, U.S.A.

A growing interest and involvement in medical ethics led him to pursue a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at the University of Chicago (1989-1990). He is currently the Director of Clinical Ethics and Professor of Family Medicine at Loma Linda University in southern California and is Clinical Co-Director of the Center for Christian Bioethics at th Loma Linda University. In these capacities, he continues to practice family medicine, teaches clinical ethics to medical students and housestaff, and provides consultations in clinical ethics to assist physicians, patients and families resolve dilemmas in patient care.

He is a member of the Ethics Commission of the Christian Medical-Dental Society and served as chairman of that commission from 1991-1994. He has served on the Ethics Committee of the Vermont State Medical Society in the past. He currently chairs the Council on Ethical Affairs of the California Medical Association and is Vice-President of the new American Society for Bioethics and the Humanities.

He is co-author of a book entitled `Life and Death Decisions', released by NavPress in 1990, and re-released in two volumes by Baker Book House in 1996, which uses the principles of medical ethics and Scriptural principles to assist Christian laymen and pastors in dealing with the difficult decisions necessitated by advances in medical technology. He has contributed to and co-edited a second book, `The Changing Face of Health Care' released by Eerdman's in 1998.

In addition, he has lectured regionally, nationally and internationally, and has contributed to the literature 8 book chapters and 70 articles about ethical issues, end-of-life medical care, and the ethics consultation process.