Bioethics

Catalog description

Bioethics focuses on the ‘reasonableness’ of human choices and actions that typically occur in health sciences practice, such as end-of-life decision-making, artificial reproduction / genetic manipulation, medical research practices and population-level allocation of health resources. The course begins with a general consideration of ethics before delving into medical practice and bioethics in particular. Students learn to debate ethical issues such as conflicts in honoring patient requests, when randomized trials are acceptable, how to think about rationing limited health or nutritional resources, and appropriate responses to patient requests to be informed about health and longevity prospects. One goal of this course is to raise awareness and inform students about the moral choices and decisions that are a part of health care careers.