Mary Faith Marshall

Emily Davie and Joseph S. Kornfeld Professor and
Director, Center for Health Humanities and Ethics
Director, Program in Biomedical Ethics
Professor, Department of Public Health Sciences
School of Medicine, Professor, School of Nursing
Professor, School of Law (University Faculty)

Mary Faith Marshall is the Director of the Center for Health Humanities and Ethics and Director of the Program in Biomedical Ethics at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. With her colleagues Lois Shepherd and Julia Taylor, she co-founded its program, Studies in Reproductive Ethics and Justice. She is Professor of Public Health Sciences in the School of Medicine, and Professor in the Department of Acute and Specialty Care in the School of Nursing. She is a member of the UVA Health System Ethics Committee, and serves on its Ethics Consult and Moral Distress Consult Services. Her expertise includes reproductive ethics, clinical and research ethics, and moral distress.

She is past president of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities (ASBH) and the American Association for Bioethics. In 2023 she received the ASBH Distinguished Service Award. She served on the ASBH Health Care Ethics Certification Task Force from 2016-2017 and currently serves on its Task Force to Advance Certification. She is a member of the inaugural class of Health Care Ethics Consultants to be certified by the ASBH (2019). She is an elected fellow of the American College of Critical Care Medicine where she chaired the SCCM Ethics Committee and currently co-chairs its panel developing new End-of-Life Guidelines. In 2017, 2019, and 2022 she received SCCM Presidential Citations for Outstanding Contributions to the Society of Critical Care Medicine. She is a member of the Raven Society at UVA.

Dr. Marshall received the Trailblazer Award from the NAACP (Charleston Chapter) in 1999 for her work in policy approaches to perinatal substance use disorder, and has testified on this subject before Congress and in US District Court. She was a member of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Committee on Ethics for eleven years, and is the primary author of its Opinion #664, Refusal of Medically Recommended Treatment During Pregnancy. She is a member of the editorial board of the American Journal of Bioethics.

Dr. Marshall has served on a number of National Institutes of Health Boards, including the NIAID Division of Aids Prevention Africa DSMB and its International DSMB for Africa. She chaired the first NIH review panel on Global Health Research Involving Human Subjects. She also chaired the National Human Research Subjects Protections Advisory Committee at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and has been a special consultant to the DHHS Secretary on research related to children and prisoners. She has been a review team member for the Office of Human Research Protections compliance oversight assessments. She was an expert advisor on the Committee on Assessing the System for Protecting Human Research at the Institute of Medicine.

Dr. Marshall received her BA, BSN and PhD from the University of Virginia, where she was the Paddock Graduate Fellow in Biomedical Ethics. She was a critical care nurse at UVA for eleven years. Her research interests include moral distress, coercive interventions in pregnancy, policy approaches to perinatal substance use disorder, clinical ethics, human subjects protections and research ethics. Dr. Marshall is former Associate Dean of Social Medicine and Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Minnesota (UMN) Medical School, and Co-Director of the UMN Center for Bioethics in the Academic Health Center.

Curriculum Vitae

Peer Reviewed Journals:

1. Minkoff H, Vullikanti RU, Marshall MF. The Two Front War on Reproductive Rights—When the Right to Abortion is Banned, Can the Right to Refuse Obstetrical Interventions Be Far Behind? American Journal of Bioethics 2024 24 (2):11-20. published online October 13, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2023.2262960 Print publication forthcoming February, 2024.

2. Hashemi S, Taylor J, Marshall MF, Childress MD. Medical Assistance in Dying: Going Beyond the Numbers. American Journal of Bioethics published online October 25, 2023. Full article: Medical Assistance in Dying: Going beyond the Numbers (tandfonline.com)
3. Taylor J, Vullikanti M, Nelamangala SL, Boguszewski KE, Marshall MF. Sexual & Reproductive Health Information on Minor Consent Forms for Pubertal Suppression and Gender-Affirming Hormones. Frontiers in Reproductive Health, 19 April 2023, Vol 5: https://doi.org/10.3389/frph.2023.1071212
4. Epstein, EG, Hurst A, Bourne D, Marshall MF (invited author). Measure for Measure: Condemning the Actor and Not the Fault. American Journal of Bioethics 23(4):66-68. https://doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2023.2186530 IF 14.676
5. Epstein, B, Marshall MF, O’Connor C, Ortiz MM. Moral Community and Teamwork in the ICU. Critical Connections, spring 2023.
6. Paltrow LM, Harris LH, Marshall MF (invited and corresponding author). Beyond Abortion: The Consequences of Overturning Roe. American Journal of Bioethics 22(8):3-15. doi: 10.1080/15265161.2022.2075965 IF: 14.676. The second most-frequently downloaded AJOB article in the past year and one of the most frequently downloaded in the past 3 years: 7,890 views, 17 CrossRef citations; Altmetric score of 35.
7. Lyerly AD, Verite A. Marshall MF (invited and corresponding author). Restrictions on Abortion, Social Justice and the Ethics of Research in Maternal-Fetal Therapy Trials. American Journal of Bioethics. 2022. 22(3): 78-81. DOI: 10.1080/15265161.2022.2030588. IF: 14.676.
8. Shepherd L, Pike CW, Persily JF, Marshall MF (senior author). The Case of Hannah Capes: How Much Does Consciousness Matter? Neuroethics. 2022. 15(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12152-022-09480-4 IF: 1.513.
9. Chen DT, Shepherd L, Taylor J, Marshall MF. Who Will Receive the Last Ventilator: Why COVID-19 Policies Should not Prioritise Healthcare Workers. Journal of Medical Ethics Published online first: 25 June 2021. doi: 10.1136/medethics-2021-107248: https://jme.bmj.com/content/early/2021/06/25/medethics-2021-107248.info. IF: 2.021
10. Epstein EG, Shah R, Marshall MF. Effect of a Moral Distress Consultation Service on Moral Distress, Empowerment, and a Healthy Work Environment. Healthcare Ethics Committee Forum. April 3, 2021: HEC Forum(2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10730-021-09449-5
11. DeBruin D (Invited), Marshall MF. Coercive Interventions in Pregnancy: Law and Ethics. Journal of Health Care Law and Policy. 2021. 23(2): 101-116. Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.umaryland.edu/jhclp/vol23/iss2/3
12. Maves RC, et al (Marshall MF). Triage of Scarce Critical Care Resources in COVID-19: An Implementation Guide for Regional Allocation-An Expert Panel Report of the Task Force for Mass Critical Care and the American College of Chest Physicians. CHEST 2020: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chest.2020.03.063. IF: 9.657.
13. Marshall MF (Invited). A Man of Vision: Daniel Callahan on the Nasty Problem and the Noxious Brew. Hastings Center Report, September/October, 2020;9-10. IF: 1.345.
14. Marshall MF (Invited author), Taylor J, DeBruin D. Ferguson v. City of Charleston Redux: Motivated Reasoning and Coercive Interventions in Pregnancy. Pediatrics. 2020; 146:S86-92. DOI: 1542/peds.2020-0818Q. IF: 7.124.
15. Epstein E (Invited author), Haizlip J, Liaschenko J, Zhao D, Bennett R, Marshall MF (senior author). Moral Distress, Mattering, and Secondary Traumatic Stress in Provider Burnout: A Call for Moral Community. AACN Advanced Critical Care. 2020 Jun 15; 31(2):146-157. IF: 1.04 PMID: 32525997

Book Chapters

1. Taylor JA, Shepherd L, Marshall MF. Reproductive Controversies: Fertility Preservation. In: Pediatric Ethics: Theory and Practice, Springer International (expected publication 2021).

Essays, Monographs, Letters, and Short Communications: 

1. 1. Marshall MF and Keith Latham (July, 2023) “Promising Reproductive Technologies Come with Ethical, Legal and Social Challenges – a Developmental Biologist and a Bioethicist Discuss IVG, Abortion and the Mice with Two Dads”. The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/promising-assisted-reproductive-technologies-come-with-ethical-legal-and-social-challenges-a-developmental-biologist-and-a-bioethicist-discuss-ivf-abortion-and-the-mice-with-two-dads-208276
   2. Marshall MF Blog post (Invited), (2022) “The Limits of Our Social Lens (I’ll Take My Sunglasses Off). American Journal of Bioethics/Bioethics Today. https://bioethicstoday.org/blog/the-limits-of-our-social-lens-on-abortion-laws-ill-take-my-sunglasses-off/
   3. Blog post, “The Ethical Pitfalls of Prioritising Healthcare Workers for Ventilators during Covid-19,” with Donna T. Chen, Lois Shepherd, Jordan Taylor, Mary Faith Marshall for Journal of Medical Ethics Blog (https://blogs.bmj.com/medical-ethics/2021/08/05/the-ethical-pitfalls-of-prioritising-healthcare-workers-for-ventilators-during-covid-19/.
   4. Chen DT, Marshall MF, Shepherd L. Prioritize Health Care Workers for Ventilators? Not So Fast. COVID-19 Hastings Center Forum, June 8, 2020; https://www.thehastingscenter.org/prioritize-health-care-workers-for-ventilators-not-so-fast/

 Amicus Briefs and Affidavits:

1. 1. Marshall MF. Signatory, Amicus Curiae Brief of Amicus Curiae National Advocates for Pregnant Women, Academy of Perinatal Harm Reduction, Americans for Safe Access Foundation, National Perinatal Association, North American Society of Psychosocial Obstetrics and Gynecology, Amy Schumer, et al in Support of Plaintiff/Appellant’s Appeal of Her Placement on the Department of Child Safety’s Central Registry. Lindsey R v. Arizona Department of Child Safety. Filed July 6, 2021.
   2. Expert Disclosure Report of Hans-Peter de Ruiter, Mary Faith Marshall, and Nicole Smith. Kirsten Hunter vs. South Dakota Dept. of Social Services et al. Case No: 17-3016 In the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota Central Division, filed May 14, 2018. Re: Unconstitutional forced catheterization of three-year-old on the order and direction of SD Department of Social Services.
   3. Marshall MF. June Medical Services LLC et al v. Rebekah Gee et al. Civil Action No. 3:16-CV-444-BAJ-RLB. In the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana. July 14, 2016
   4. Spence R, Diaz-Tello F, Marshall MF. Bioethics Amicus Curiae Brief in Support of Appellant Michelle H. Mitchell in Mitchell v. Brooks before the Virginia Supreme Court, filing February 29, 2016.

   RECENT MEDIA and INTERVIEWS

   Interview: “Virginia Senate Passes Bill Allowing Physician-Assisted Death.” NBC 29, WVIR, February 11, 2024.

   Interview: “Ethicists Can Find Consensus over Patient’s DNR Status.” By Stacey Kusterbeck. (December, 2023). Medical Ethics Advisor 39(12): 187-188,

   Interview: “Ethicists Often Called to Resolve Conflicts Over Aggressive Care.” By Stacey Kusterbeck. (September, 2023). Medical Ethics Advisor 39(9): 129-144.

   Interview: “Ethics plays important role in response to abortion ruling.” By Stacey Kusterbeck. (August, 2022) Medical Ethics Advisor 38(8):115-117.

   Interview: “After Roe v. Wade: US researchers warn of what’s to come.” By Mariana Lenharo, Nature (June 24, 2022) https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-01775-z

   Interview: Fact check: “Abortion-related deaths continued after Roe v. Wade, but occurred less often.” By Sudiksha Kochi, USA Today (June 6, 2022) Fact check: False claim abortion-related deaths ended after Roe ruling (usatoday.com)