Edmund D. Pellegrino Room dedicated at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

Ceremony marked by warm personal memories and renewed dedication to the values taught and embodied by the late bioethics pioneer

On June 16, 2025, in a well-attended gathering that was both celebratory and reflective, MedStar Georgetown University Hospital inaugurated the Edmund D. Pellegrino Room—a dedicated space for ethics consultation and education—as part of its continuing partnership with the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University Medical Center.

Dr. Allen H. Roberts II, Physician Executive Director for Inpatient Operations, Associate Medical Director at MedStar Georgetown, Chair of the MedStar Georgetown Clinical Ethics Committee, and Pellegrino Center faculty member, presided over the day’s events, beginning with the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Pellegrino Room itself. Named in honor of Edmund D. Pellegrino, MD (1920-2013), renowned physician and scholar who is considered a pioneer in the field of bioethics, the room is located on the fourth floor of the Bles building (4 Bles) between the Eileen Ferrell Nurses Wellness and Relaxation Center and the Multifaith Room of Prayer. Dr. Roberts observed, at the ceremony and in the June issue of The Pellegrino Report dedicated to the new room, that this location is a fitting reflection of the integration of clinical, emotional, and spiritual care, reflecting the mission of the Pellegrino Center as a place where medicine, philosophy, religion, and ethics converge to serve the whole person.

The ceremony was followed by a reception at which a room full of friends, family, former students, and colleagues of Dr. Pellegrino shared memories of him and reflections on his long-lasting intellectual and personal impact. Among those speaking to the gathering were colleagues Dr. Siva Subramanian, Clinical Professor Emeritus and former Chief, Division of Neonatology Dr. Gabriel Hauser, Chief, Pediatric Critical Care & Pulmonary Medicine and Vice Chair, Department of Pediatrics; Dr. Sarah Vittone, Associate Professor, and Senior Program Director of the Undergraduate Studies and Masters Entry Nursing Program and faculty member at the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics; Dr. Lawrence Prograis, former Affiliated Scholar at the PCCB and co-editor with Dr. Pellegrino of the 2007 compendium African American Bioethics; Dr. Miguel Fernandez, Associate OBGYN Clerkship and Residency Director and Cura Personalis Fellow at GUMC; former studentDr. Christine Grady, who served as Chief of the Department of Bioethics at the National Institutes of Health; and long-time Pellegrino Center staff member Dr. David Miller, and Mrs. Marti Patchell, who worked with Dr. Pellegrino for a combined total of over 60 years.

At the reception, an excerpt of a documentary about Dr. Pellegrino provided biographical and intellectual context for his remarkable career. The film, which was produced by Dr. Claudia Sotomayor for the Pellegrino Center in 2020 to mark the 100th anniversary of his birth, details how deeply rooted he was in faith, family, and dedication to the profession of medicine.

The Pellegrino Room is more than just a physical space—it is a “locus ethicus,” as Dr. Roberts has described it. Its purpose is manifold: a private setting for families and clinicians to reflect on ethically complex cases; a gathering place for ethical teaching, mentorship, and discussion; and a haven for caregivers grappling with the moral distress that can accompany modern medical decision-making.

In the special June issue of The Pellegrino Report, Dr. Sheehan shared four key functions of the new space. Primarily, it enables confidential, in-depth consultations between ethicists and clinical staff, including physicians and students. No less importantly, it offers families a more tranquil environment to discuss care decisions when loved ones are critically ill. Third, the room will serve as an educational venue for ethical dialogue.

In his reflection and at the reception following the ribbon-cutting, Dr. Sheehan expressed gratitude to MedStar Georgetown, especially Mr. Michael Sachtleben and Dr. Lisa Boyle, and to donors whose support helped realize the vision of this room—not as a “shrine,” but as “part of our effort to continue Dr. Pellegrino’s legacy of the importance of caregiving, listening to the patient, thoughtful decision making, and need for virtue in those who care for patients.”

Dr. Pellegrino’s legacy, he noted, is rooted in the Catholic and Jesuit tradition of cura personalis or care for the whole person, which is also central to the mission of MedStar Georgetown. The room named for him will serve as a powerful reminder that ethics must remain central to medicine, especially in the face of a healthcare landscape often driven by efficiency and economics. “Our commitment to cura personalis includes growing in our ability to discern the best ethical path forward in tough cases,” Dr. Sheehan wrote. The Pellegrino Room will be a place where Dr. Pellegrino’s spirit and inspiration will live on in the critical work of always “seeking the right and good healing action” for and with patients, families, students, and colleagues.