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Amber Comer, ’11, an assistant professor in the IU School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, provided research for potential legislation that would establish an order of priority for authorized consent for another individual. It is hoped that the legislation would alleviate delays in patient care and minimize the need for court intervention.

While the measure, Senate Bill 193, is not under consideration, the issue will be the subject of a summer study committee and could be considered by the General Assembly in 2017.

Comer, who received her Ph.D. from IU Fairbanks School of Public Health, will present a talk on March 2 from noon to 1 p.m. at Riley Hospital for Children on the subject of surrogacy. Her presentation, “’What do you mean I cannot consent for my grandmother’s medical procedure?’: Key Ethical Issues with Indiana’s Health Care Consent Statute” will examine who may serve as a health care surrogate in Indiana, the ethics issues involved, and present findings of a study of physician’s understanding of the state’s health care consent law.