Nicholas Mercado, DrPH, MS, HEC-C
Nicholas R. Mercado is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Humanities and Bioethics at the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry. Nick completed his clinical ethics fellowship 2017-2018 at Northwell Health on Long Island and is a healthcare ethics consultant certified through the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities. He serves as Director of Health Humanities and Bioethics Undergraduate Medical Education at URSMD and serves as one of the core clinical ethics consultants for University of Rochester Medical Center.
Nick is President-Elect of the Empire State Bioethics Consortium – an organization of scholars, researchers, and practitioners dedicated to addressing ethical issues and inequities in health and health care across New York State. His primary scholarly interest lies in understanding the ethical challenges, both clinical and systems-based, faced by family caregivers as they navigate the complexities of providing care for loved ones with chronic illnesses, disabilities, or age-related conditions.
Nick is a musician, singer, actor, and avid karaoke enthusiast which, he says, contributes to his professional roles as a teacher and ethicist.
Ethical Issues in Family Care: Implications for the Health Professions and Our Communities
with Nicholas Mercado
Rosalynn Carter, Former First Lady of the United States, said, "There are only four kinds of people in the world: those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers." Family caregivers provide approximately 80% of all care to people living at home and in the community.
Essential to the care of patients, and essential to the biopsychosocial approach to medicine, is understanding and appreciating the role of family care and the ethical issues that impact the clinician-patient-caregiver triad and the broader long-term care system. The purpose of this presentation is to reflect on the ethical issues in family caregiving and discuss practical responses to these ethical issues when they arise.
Wednesday, May 13, 2026 from 1:00 - 2:30 PM
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