Medical Ethics

Students may investigate one or more of a range of issues in medical ethics. This may focus on issues such as abortion, contraception, genetic engineering, organ transplantation, use and distribution of medical resources, euthanasia in its various forms, palliative care, fertility treatment, neo-natal
care, for example in the case of exceedingly premature births or handicapped newborns, or development of new medical treatments and procedures. Students should consider the range of controversies which arise from these issues, examining them from one or more ethical perspective, for example, Utilitarian
approaches, religious ethics, or deontological moral theories.

Students may consider ethical questions which are relevant to one or more issues in medical ethics, such as the principle of the sanctity of life, medical consent, rights and duties, responsibilities and choices. Students will not be disadvantaged whether they study only one issue in medical ethics or cover a range.