Amber Comer, Ph.D., J.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Health Sciences and holds an appointment as an affiliate research scientist at the Regenstrief Institute. Additionally, Comer is a member of the Eskenazi Hospital medical ethics committee and ethics consultation service.
Comer is an expert in medical decision-making whose research has led to a change in Indiana’s Health Care Consent Law. Her research goal is to reduce suffering at the end of life by improving quality medical decision-making. She received an Early Career Achievement Award in 2017 from Indiana University McKinney School of Law for her work changing Indiana’s Health Care Consent Law.
Comer graduated from Indiana University McKinney School of Law, with a Juris Doctor with a concentration in health law, and she is a graduate of Indiana University Fairbanks School of Public Health, where she received her Ph.D. She completed a Medical Ethics Fellowship at the Indiana University Health Fairbanks Center for Medical Ethics in 2014 and was an American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine Research Scholar in 2018. Comer is also a member of the Indiana State Bar.
Comer researches medical decision-making, with a special focus on the role of palliative care in medical decision-making for hospitalized patients. Her current work includes researching the role of palliative care in medical decisions for hospitalized patients with severe stroke. Additionally, Comer is studying the effect of State Health Care Consent Laws on hospitalized patients’ medical decisions and care, and she researches bioethical issues in medical decision making. She is a member of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine Public Policy Committee, and chair of the Bioethics Sig.
