Center for Practical Bioethics

What Center for Practical Bioethics does

The Center for Practical Bioethics is an independent nonprofit organization founded in 1984 (originally as the Midwest Bioethics Center) and headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas. It delivers clinical and organizational ethics consulting, advance care planning programs, and educational content to hospitals, hospices, health systems, and long-term care facilities primarily in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the broader Midwest. Its core services include Clinical Ethics Services (case consultation, ethics committee support), Advance Care Planning (including the "Caring Conversations" workbooks and the "Let's Talk About ACP" community program), Ethical AI Services, and a Population Health / Deliberative Democracy practice. The Center also operates Medical Student Education programs, publishes a monthly Bioethics Bulletin and Ethics Dispatch newsletter, and maintains a 40+ year resource library of case studies in print and video.

The Center's underlying technology is non-proprietary; capabilities center on applied ethical frameworks, deliberative methodologies, and advisory workflows rather than software products. Revenue is generated through a recurring affiliate membership model (Ethics Services partnerships with healthcare organizations), supplemented by grants (notably a $3.5 million NIH/NIMHD award in 2020 for the Project Talk trial and a $200,000 Sunflower Foundation grant for elder abuse research), donations, and event-based fundraising such as the Breakfast of Champions and Flanigan Lecture. The go-to-market motion is sales-led and relationship-driven, with regional concentration and earned-media presence in outlets including the New York Times, NBC, and the Kansas City Star.

The portfolio functions as an integrated service suite where clinical consultation, training, and thought-leadership content reinforce one another. Recent operational signals include a leadership transition (James Stowe, PhD appointed President and CEO in January 2023), the promotion of Lindsey Jarrett to VP of Ethical AI, and the Fall 2025 appointment of Kayhan Parsi and Nanette Elster as John B. Francis Co-Chairs in Bioethics. The organization appears stable and operationally active, with no evidence of M&A activity, institutional investment, or material geographic expansion.

Name

Center for Practical Bioethics

Legal name

Center for Practical Bioethics

Website

https://practicalbioethics.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Center for Practical Bioethics is a 40-year-old nonprofit headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas that provides clinical ethics consulting, advance care planning, ethical AI advisory, and bioethics education to hospitals, hospices, and health systems primarily in the Kansas City region and Midwest United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bioethics Consulting Services

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Healthcare Clinical Professions (CME/CE for Nurses, Allied Health, Pharmacy) (EDAAALAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

End-of-Life Emotional & Spiritual Support (Chaplaincy/Counseling) In-Home (HSABAFAH)

Keywords

• Clinical ethics consultation
• Bioethics advisory services
• Advance care planning
• Healthcare ethics education
• Ethical AI consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Kansas City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ethics Services Membership: Healthcare organizations become affiliate members of the Center's Ethics Services, receiving ongoing ethics consultation support, monthly Ethics Dispatch publications, and access to case studies and educational resources as part of their annual membership.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Center for Practical Bioethics provides clinical and organizational ethics consultation services to healthcare organizations (hospitals, hospices, health systems, long-term care facilities) through affiliate membership partnerships. It also delivers advance care planning programs (including Caring Conversations), ethical AI advisory services for healthcare, population health and deliberative democracy programs, and bioethics education for medical students and professionals.

Product overview

The Center for Practical Bioethics offers a portfolio of bioethics services organized around four core areas: Advance Care Planning (including Caring Conversations materials and the Let's Talk About ACP program), Clinical Ethics Services for healthcare organizations, Ethical AI Services addressing AI ethics in healthcare, and Population Health programs focused on deliberative democracy and health equity. The organization also provides Medical Student Education, publishes a monthly Ethics Dispatch newsletter and Bioethics Bulletin, and maintains a Resource Library of case studies in video and print formats. The portfolio functions as an integrated suite where clinical consultation services, educational programs, and informational products (newsletters, case studies) work together to support healthcare organizations and individuals in navigating ethical issues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clinical Ethics Services Ethics consultation services for healthcare organizations, assisting health professionals in identifying, analyzing and resolving ethical issues that arise in clinical settings. Delivered through affiliate membership partnerships that include ongoing consultation, case studies, and the monthly Ethics Dispatch.
• Ethical AI Services Advisory services addressing ethical considerations in artificial intelligence deployment within healthcare, including bias reduction, fairness, and responsible AI implementation.
• Advance Care Planning Programs and materials (including Caring Conversations) helping individuals, families, and healthcare organizations document and communicate healthcare wishes in advance.
• Population Health / Deliberative Democracy Programs focused on public health ethics and civic engagement approaches to health equity, including democratic deliberation processes for community health decision-making.
• Medical Student Education Educational programs and resources for medical students including workshops, case studies, and training in healthcare ethics.
• Let's Talk About ACP Advance care planning consultation program developed by Gloria Thomas Anderson to help communities of color navigate medical options and document healthcare decisions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Rapid ethics consultations available for time-sensitive cases
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• American Journal of Public HealthminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023CPB's John B. Francis Chair and research associates contributed to an October AJPH issue devoted to building common ground through public deliberation.
• Nelson-Atkins Museum of ArtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Center collaborated with the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art on the 'Art of the Wish' exhibition and fundraiser in 2022, which depicted older Americans' wishes for the world and supported advance care planning awareness.
• St. Joseph Health CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost venue for the 30th Annual Flanigan Lecture, providing a platform for bioethics education and community engagement.
• Kansas City University of Medicine and BiosciencesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsored the Current Issues in Bioethics Lecture Series, providing medical humanities education for students and professionals.
• BioNexus KCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on ethical AI in healthcare initiatives, with CPB's Ethical AI Initiative featured in BioNexus KC communications.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Respecting Choices (an Honoring Choices program): Organization dedicated to advance care planning program design, training, and certification for healthcare systems. Direct peer on the advance care planning service line (CPB offers Caring Conversations materials); competes for the same hospital customer relationships.
• Center for Bioethics and Humanities, SUNY Upstate Medical University: Academic bioethics and humanities program offering ethics consultation, education, and research integrated with a medical school. Direct peer on educational programming and clinical ethics consultation for health systems.
• MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics (University of Chicago): Academic clinical ethics program offering ethics consultation, fellowship training, and research at a major US medical center. Direct peer on clinical ethics services and bioethics education, though embedded in a university hospital rather than operating as an independent nonprofit.

Broad incumbents

• The Hastings Center: Independent nonprofit bioethics research institute founded in 1969, the most established US bioethics organization. Directly comparable as a nonprofit offering bioethics research, publications, and advisory services, though its scope is national policy rather than clinical/hospital consulting.
• Berman Institute of Bioethics (Johns Hopkins University): One of the largest university-based bioethics programs, conducting research, education, and policy work across health, AI, and public health ethics. Comparable on the ethical AI and population health axes; broader and better funded but academic rather than practitioner-driven.
• Kennedy Institute of Ethics (Georgetown University): Long-running academic bioethics institute providing research, education, and the Bioethics Research Library. Comparable in longevity and educational programming, with a stronger emphasis on scholarly publishing than clinical consultation.

Others

• American Society for Bioethics and Humanities (ASBH): Professional association serving bioethics and humanities practitioners with conferences, certification (HEC-C), and publications. Indirect peer/ecosystem partner since CPB staff hold HEC-C credentials and contribute to ASBH-adjacent programming.
• Greenwall Foundation (Bioethics Grantmaking): Private foundation making grants in bioethics research and education. Ecosystem/funder peer rather than competitor; relevant because CPB's grant-funded model depends on foundations like this, and they sometimes fund the same research area.

Regional players

• National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO): National nonprofit membership organization focused on hospice and palliative care, closely aligned with CPB's advance care planning and end-of-life work (CPB cited recognition from Missouri Hospice & Palliative Care Association). Comparable on end-of-life ethics, but broader in scope.
• Children's Mercy Bioethics Center (Kansas City): Hospital-affiliated bioethics program at Children's Mercy Hospital, a CPB customer. Local peer providing pediatric clinical ethics consultation; comparable on clinical ethics service line but limited to pediatric inpatient care.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pracbioethics
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/PracticalBioethics
• Facebookfacebook.com/practicalbioethics
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/center-for-practical-bioethics

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Center for Practical Bioethics