Mark R. Tonelli, MD, MA

Research interests: the philosophical and epistemological underpinnings of clinical decision-making. Focus on case-based (casuistic) reasoning, exploring the categories and legitimacy of specific warrants used to support clinical decisions. Helping to develop a philosophy and model of person-centered medicine, particularly for critical care

Professor
Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine
Section Head, UW Medical Center
Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Fellowship Training Director

Contact Information

University of Washington Medical Center
1959 N.E. Pacific, Campus Box 356522
Seattle, WA 98195-6522

Clinician-Educator Web Page

tonelli@u.washington.edu
Academic Office: (206) 543-3166
Fax: (206) 685-8673
Clinic Appointments: (206) 598-4615

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Education and Training

B.A. in Philosophy, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 1984.

M.D., University of Colorado, Denver, CO, 1989.

M.A. in Medical Ethics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 1996.

Internship in Internal Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA, 1990.

Residency in Internal Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA, 1992.

Fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University 

ACLS certified 

Scholarly Interests

Elucidating the philosophical and epistemological underpinnings of clinical decision-making. Focus on case-based (casuistic) reasoning, exploring the categories and legitimacy of specific warrants used to support clinical decisions. Helping to develop a philosophy and model of person-centered medicine, particularly for critical care.

Also maintain a general interest in medical ethics, particularly in critical care medicine and adult cystic fibrosis.

Representative Publications

Tonelli MR; Pulling the plug on living wills: A critical analysis of advance directives. Chest 1996; 110:816-822.

Tonelli MR; The philosophical limits of evidence-based medicine. Acad Med 1998; 73:1234-1240.

Tonelli MR and Callahan T; Why alternative medicine cannot be evidence-based. Acad Med 2001; 76:1213-1220.

Tonelli MR; Waking the dying: Must we always attempt to involve critically ill patients in end-of-life decisions. Chest. 2005 127(2):637-42.

Tonelli MR; Integrating evidence into clinical practice: An alternative to evidence-based approaches. J Eval Clin Pract. 2006; 12:248-56. 

Tonelli MR, Curtis JR, Guntupalli KK, Rubenfeld GD, Arroliga AC, Brochard L, Douglas IS, Gutterman DD, Hall JR, Kavanagh BP, Mancebo J, Misak CJ, Simpson SQ, Slutsky AS, Suffredini AF, Thompson BT, Ware LB, Wheeler AP, Levy MM; An official multi-society statement: the role of clinical research results in the practice of critical care medicine. Am J Resp Crit Care Med 2012 185:1117-1124. 

Tonelli MR; Compellingness: assessing the practical relevance of clinical research results. J Eval Clin Pract. 2012; 18(5):962-7.