UTMB researchers are hopeful that discussions among non-health care communities may provide insight to the ethical questions that can arise with rising costs and emerging technologies and procedures. Researchers also want to learn more about how people in different social circles form opinions or make decisions about their health care. That could help shape health policy. The study is part of a project overseen by Dr. James Goodwin and funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. To complete the study, UTMB faculty worked with two different communities in Galveston. “Nowhere in the U.S., right now, is there regular engagement of ordinary citizens in bioethics dialogue in a sustained manner,” study coordinator Dr. Howard Brody observed. “We are trying to show at UTMB, taking advantage of the cultural diversity of our region, that this is a feasible way to enrich bioethics debate in the future.”