Chris Feudtner

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Chris Feudtner, MD, PhD, MPH

Division Chief, Division of General Pediatrics

Dr. Feudtner's research strives to advance the well-being of pediatric patients with complex chronic conditions and serious, often rare, illnesses, and to promote the well-being of their families. Along with his colleagues, Dr. Feudtner is conducting studies focusing on pediatric palliative care, complex care, the impact on families of pediatric serious illness, and pediatric medical ethics.

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Bio

As a pediatrician, clinical investigator, and ethicist, Dr. Feudtner has focused his career on improving the lives of children with complex chronic conditions and their families, including the provision of palliative care when indicated.

In the realm of pediatric palliative care, he is board-certified in hospice and palliative care medicine. He co-founded and co-lead the Pediatric Palliative Care Research Network, which has over 100 members across the United States and beyond. Currently, he is the principal investigator for the “SHARE” RO1-funded multicenter prospective observational cohort study of pediatric patients receiving palliative care services. He has been honored to receive the Hastings Center Cunniff-Dixon Physician Award (2014) and the Award for Excellence in Scientific Research in Palliative Care from the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (2019).

Regarding pediatric complex care, Dr. Feudtner has been a practicing “complex care” pediatrician for over 20 years. Earlier work on pediatric complex chronic conditions – enabling epidemiologic and health services research studies of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults with these conditions –has resulted in hundreds of citations with work by other investigators, and has helped to bring the importance of this domain of pediatrics into clearer focus.

In the field of medical ethics, Dr. Feudtner investigates a wide variety of topics related to ethics, health, and healthcare. He is director of the Department of Medical Ethics at CHOP, which provides clinical ethics consultation and ethics engagement throughout the hospital and network.

As an investigator and scholar, he has examined the ways that emotions and cognitive heuristics shape medical decision-making, ethical considerations for programs aiming to serve children with medical complexity, and the interface of ethics and palliative care. Along with his colleagues, Dr. Feudtner conducts studies focusing on ethical aspects of decision making, new healthcare technologies, ethics consultations, good parent beliefs, end-of-life care, complex care, and the design and presentation of health studies.

In recognition for this work, he was appointed as a Hastings Center Fellow (2014) and received the American Academy of Pediatrics'William G. Bartholome Award for Ethical Excellence (2017).