Paul D. Ossman

Paul D. Ossman, MD, MPH serves as Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine within the Department of Medicine, Division of Hospital Medicine. He holds dual leadership roles as Lead Physician Advisor for Clinical Documentation Integrity and Lead Consultant for the Hospital Ethics Committee.

• BS: North Carolina State University
• MPH: University of North Carolina School of Public Health
• MD: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine
• Residency: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Dr. Ossman's clinical expertise spans hospital medicine with specialized integration of geriatric and palliative care principles. His research focuses on clinical bioethics, particularly emotional labor in pediatric care and ethical decision-making. He actively contributes to hospitalist education through resident and medical student teaching across multiple clinical services including the Hospitalist Service, Medicine Consult Service, and Medicine Procedure Service. His work with the Clinical Documentation Integrity team aims to improve documentation accuracy for critically ill patients.

Analysis of his publications reveals consistent focus on clinical ethics (3 of 5 articles), hospital medicine quality improvement (2 articles), and geriatric care optimization (1 article). Key research threads include ethical challenges in pediatric proxies, preventable hospital readmissions, and systematic approaches to clinical documentation.

As Lead Consultant for the Hospital Ethics Committee since 2009, Dr. Ossman provides institutional leadership in clinical bioethics education across departments. His teaching philosophy emphasizes communication skills and ethical reasoning for learners at all levels.

Dr. Ossman maintains active clinical practice while contributing to system-level improvements in documentation integrity and ethical consultation services at UNC Hospitals.