by: Olivia Gamboa ( @Liv_g_g ) There is broad consensus in the medical community that lying to patients is unethical. However, in the care of patients with dementia, the moral clarity of this approach blurs. In her recent New Yorker article, “The Memory House,” Larissa MacFarquhar provides an excellent portrait of the common devices of artifice, omission and outright deception that are frequently deployed in the care of patients with dementia. She furthermore explores the historical and ethical underpinnings of the various approaches used in disclosing (or not) information to patients living with dementia. Ms. MacFarquhar introduces the idea of “compassionate deception,” or the concept that withholding truths, or even promoting outright falsehoods, is a reasonable and even ethical choice for those caring for patients with dementia. To the extent that it helps a person with dementia feel happier and calmer, allowing them to believe in a gentler reality (one in which, say,