Clinical neuropsychologist Cindy Kubu, PhD, explores how ethics shapes clinical decision-making and helps people flourish.
Published May 5, 2026
Contributed by: Cindy Kubu, PhD / Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Everyday Ethics: A Conversation with Clinical Neuropsychologist Cindy Kubu, PhD
Cindy Kubu, PhD, is a Clinical Neuropsychologist who joined the MetroHealth Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) team last fall. She previously worked at Cleveland Clinic, primarily with its neuromodulation team. In addition to her research, clinical and leadership roles at MetroHealth, she chairs the Ethics Committee for the American Psychological Association.
We sat down with Dr. Kubu to talk about her work, the role ethics play in rehabilitation medicine and how interdisciplinary teams can navigate complex patient situations in a more intentional way.
Q. How did you become interested in ethics, and what drives your work?
Dr. Kubu: I’m the product of an amazing liberal arts education. I went to Carleton College in Minnesota, and I’ve always loved the humanities. When I speak to groups, I often start by saying I love studying what I study, which is how the brain connects to who we are, or the human soul or psyche. Ethics gives us a set of tools to look at challenging questions in a careful way, and it can have a very real-world impact for patients.
What drives my work is the idea that ethics should promote human flourishing. If you look at virtue theory, that’s Aristotle’s ultimate virtue — human flourishing, or eudaimonia.
Q. What is your role with the MetroHealth rehab team, and how does ethics show up in your day-to-day work?
Dr. Kubu: At MetroHealth, I’m a staff scientist within PM&R. I spend about half of my time in academics and research, where I serve as a principal investigator on ethics-related projects. About 30% of my time goes to general neuropsychology clinical services. For example, I may evaluate patients when there are concerns about memory or cognitive symptoms related to a traumatic brain injury (TBI) or other brain-based conditions. I devote the remaining 20% to serving as Director of Faculty Development, helping faculty move forward in their academic careers and promotion processes.
One of my goals is to help providers at MetroHealth make ethical thinking part of routine clinical and research work. I want to help them be more deliberate about why they’re making certain decisions and to approach ethical conversations thoughtfully.
Q. What research are you currently pursuing?
Dr. Kubu: One area of study focuses on “neural data.” There’s been considerable interest in that term, especially with advances in deep brain stimulation and other intracranial implants. Some of the technologies can decode limited language signals to help someone communicate. But that progress has also fueled concerns. People wonder whether implanted devices can control their behavior or read their minds without permission. Their fears may create mistrust of their provider or dissuade them from seeking treatment.
Our research seeks to answer questions such as “What is neural data?” “How do patients, providers and researchers understand it?” and “Do we need new guidelines, or are existing protections around psychological and behavioral data sufficient?”
We hope our work leads to better communication between providers and patients, as well as more trust. This is highly relevant in rehabilitation, where we work with brain-based data in TBI, stroke and spinal cord injury.
Q. Why is it important for rehab teams to slow down and think through ethical decisions instead of just going with their gut?
Dr. Kubu: Ethical decisions happen every day in PM&R, but we don’t always pause to recognize them. Decisions such as “How can we protect a patient’s privacy and confidentiality when family members ask questions about their prognosis?” and “What should and should not be documented and shared within an interdisciplinary team?”
What we want instead is clarity about why we’re making a decision and some level of consistency in how we approach similar situations. It can’t just be what your gut says in one moment and something different the next. When values are in tension, we need good reasons to prioritize one over the other. Being able to clearly articulate that reasoning doesn’t just strengthen patient care. It helps trainees, colleagues and the entire team learn how to approach complex situations in a thoughtful, deliberate way.
Dr. Kubu is dedicated to helping faculty and colleagues thrive. Feel free to reach out to her about questions related to professionalism, empirical ethics research and academic promotion.
