Journal of Medical Ethics (Volume 35, Number 7, July 2009) is now available by subscription only.

Articles Include:

• “More than cautionary tales: the role of fiction in bioethics” by Sarah Chan, 398-399.
• “HIV testing of junior doctors: exploring their experiences, perspectives and accounts” by L R Salkeld, S J McGeehan, E Chaudhuri, and I M Kerslake, 402-406.
• “The ethics of the placebo in clinical practice revisited” by P Louhiala, 407-409.
• “Reconsidering prenatal screening: an empirical–ethical approach to understand moral dilemmas as a question of personal preferences” by E García, D R M Timmermans, and E van Leeuwen, 410-414.
• “Bone marrow transplantation in the prevention of intellectual disability due to inherited metabolic disease: ethical issues” by P Louhiala, 415-418.
• “Understanding respect: learning from patients” by N W Dickert and N E Kass, 419-423.
• “Exploring morally relevant issues facing families in their decisions to monitor the health-related behaviours of loved ones” by D Gammon, E K Christiansen, and R Wynn, 424-428.
• “Is all fair in biological warfare? The controversy over genetically engineered biological weapons” by J M Appel, 429-432.
• “Genetic enhancements and expectations” by K Sorensen, 433-435.
• “Belgian euthanasia law: a critical analysis” by R Cohen-Almagor, 436-439.
• “Vulnerability in palliative care research: findings from a qualitative study of black Caribbean and white British patients with advanced cancer” by J Koffman, M Morgan, P Edmonds, P Speck, and I J Higginson, 440-444.
• “Limits to research risks” by F G Miller and S Joffe, 445-449.
• “Split views among parents regarding children’s right to decide about participation in research: a questionnaire survey” by  U Swartling, G Helgesson, M G Hansson, and J Ludvigsson, 450-458.

International Ethics Conference Retrieving the Human Face of Science
Understanding Ethics and Integrity in Healthcare, Medicine and Research
University of Botswana
6-10 December 2009

About The Conference

Science is a very important aspect of human life as it has led to advancements in knowledge and improvements in health and human life. Yet each day, practitioners in the areas of healthcare, medicine and research confront difficult questions that need responses as they seek to conduct themselves in ways that are expected by society. If Science is to serve mankind well, it needs to have a human face. The University of Botswana in partnership with the US Navy Medicine and the Uniformed Services University (USA) have organized an educational conference to be held at the University of Botswana from 6-10 December 2009. The theme of the conference is “Retrieving the Human face of Science: Understanding Ethics and Integrity in Healthcare, Medicine and Research”.

The Conference seeks to bring together practitioners in the area of health care, medicine and research to discuss Ethical issues and Integrity in Healthcare, Medicine and Research. Through keynote addresses, presentations and panel discussions, the conference will explore ways of bringing out the human face of science locally, nationally and globally. This conference will address the best evidence and action on the role of science diplomacy and the evidence and opportunities for action as we seek to integrate ethics and integrity into our institutional and national policies and programs.

Conference Highlights

We note with celebration that the first keynote will be given by His Grace, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee in South Africa on “Human Illness and the Experience of Vulnerability”. This will be followed by a second keynote by the US Navy Surgeon General, VADM Adam Robinson, MC, USN on “Hearing the Cries of the Poor: Healthcare as Human Response”. Conference evening events for networking and socializing will include a Bush Braii at the Mokolodi Nature Reserve (additional charge), as well as receptions hosted by the Vice Chancellor of the University of Botswana and the US Ambassador to Botswana.

Educational Technology Exposition

Michael Whitecar, The President of The Chief Information Group, Inc will hold an Educational Technology Exposition from 6-10 December 2009 in the UB Library. He will be demonstrating the usage of various technologies for use in learning and research.

Poster Session

A poster session related to the theme of the conference is also included and abstracts will be accepted until September 15th 2009. Space will be allocated for these posters in the conference venue for the duration of the Conference. Presenters will be expected to be at their posters during the conference breaks to answer questions and interact with

conference participants. Individuals interested in displaying a poster can contact ubethicsconference@mopipi.ub.bw for further information.

Conference registration

Save on conference fees by registering early!

Online registration for the conference is available here.

Is there a role for fiction in explorations of ethics? Are words, as Conchis says, only for truth, for facts? Or is it perhaps the case that words can be used to help us reach a deeper truth—through fiction? This month the Journal of Medical Ethics features a form of publication rarely found in the pages of scholarly journals: the first instalment of a fictional “bioethics soap opera” designed to offer a somewhat different exploration of the issues that are the subject of the journal’s usual offerings. [Premium (Journal of Medical Ethics)]

Doctors face tough questions about life and death, including the amount and quality of time a person can live. How much is life worth is an ethical dilemma doctors face when deciding upon a therapy. How can the value of life impact health care reform? (Journal)

Last October, I broke news of a very exciting new technique for genetic screening of embryos. Genome-wide karyomapping, developed by Alan Handyside, of the Bridge Centre in London, potentially marks a step change for the field, as it has the capacity to transform the range of genetic mutations and variations that can be detected.

Critically, there is no need to know the precise sequence of a mutation or variation for which you wish to test. Instead, SNPs and haplotypes are used to track how an embryo’s chromosomes are put together, and whether sections that include the DNA in which you’re interested have been passed on. (Times Online)

It is common knowledge that, in nearly all developed countries, the number of persons older than 65 years is increasing, both in absolute terms and as a proportion of the general population. By some estimates, the number of those older than 65 years will double in the United States in the next 2 decades. While there have always been attempts to prolong longevity, there is now an increased interest—and ability—to improve the quality of those added years. [Premium (JAMA)]

While various forms of harm resulting from health care are well known, the full nature of such harm and the magnitude of health care’s aggregate adverse health effects deserve more exploration. On balance, the data remain imprecise, and the benefits that US health care currently deliver may not outweigh the aggregate health harm it imparts. In this Commentary, we discuss potential harms from health care, suggest a taxonomy for health care harm, and suggest that investigators start addressing this issue. [Premium (JAMA)]

A ‘genetic’ ‘MoT’ that can spot almost all inherited diseases in an IVF-created embryo could be available within a year. The £2,500 test can detect around 15,000 genetic conditions, including cystic fibrosis, Huntington’s disease and some types of cancer, autism and mental retardation. It also counts the number of chromosomes in the embryos, potentially increasing the chances of pregnancy and cutting the odds of miscarriage. (Daily Mail)

Primary care services will face an ‘avalanche of need’ among dying patients if they do not act now to improve end-of-life care, a leading expert in end-of-life care has warned. (Nursing Times)

American Journal of Transplantation (Volume 9, Issue 7, July 2009) is now available by subscription only.

Articles Include:

• “The AJT Report: News and issues that affect organ and tissue transplantation” by Sue Pondrom, 1487-1488.
• “Lung Transplantation Outcomes: The Importance and Inadequacies of Assessing Survival” by R. D. Yusen, 1493-1494.
• “The AST’s Perspective on the Proposed Kidney Allocation System” by B. Murphy, F. Vincenti and H.-U. Meier-Kriesche, 1500.
• “The Kidney Allocation Score: Methodological Problems, Moral Concerns and Unintended Consequences” by B. Hippen, 1507-1512.
• “Evaluating Options for Utility-Based Kidney Allocation” by D. L. Segev, 1513-1518.
• “Balancing Multiple and Conflicting Allocation Goals: A Logical Path Forward” by P. G. Stock, 1519-1522.
• “Developing a New Kidney Allocation Policy: The Rationale for Including Life Years from Transplant” by M. D. Stegall, 1528-1532.
• “The Effects of DonorNet 2007 on Kidney Distribution Equity and Efficiency” by A. B. Massie, S. L. Zeger, R. A. Montgomery, and D. L. Segev, 1550-1557.
• “Recipient Outcomes for Expanded Criteria Living Kidney Donors: The Disconnect Between Current Evidence and Practice” by Y. Iordanous, N. Seymour, A. Young, J. Johnson, A. V. Iansavichus, M. S. Cuerden, J. S. Gill, E. Poggio, and A. X. Garg, 1558-1573.

Sociology of Health & Illness (Volume 31, Issue 2, March 2009) is now available by subscription only.

Articles Include:

• “Bridging gaps in risk discourse: home care case management and client choices” by Christine Ceci and Mary Ellen Purkis, 201-214.
• “The impact of pay-for-performance on professional boundaries in UK general practice: an ethnographic study” by Suzanne Grant, Guro Huby, Francis Watkins, Kath Checkland, Ruth McDonald, Huw Davies, and Bruce Guthrie, 229-245.
• “Doing accountability: a discourse analysis of research ethics committee letters” by Michelle O’Reilly, Mary Dixon-Woods, Emma Angell, Richard Ashcroft, and Alan Bryman, 246-261.
• “Practising Open Disclosure: clinical incident communication and systems improvement” by Rick Iedema, Christine Jorm, John Wakefield, Cherie Ryan, and Stewart Dunn, 262-277.

Book Reviews Include:

• “HIV in South Africa: talking about the big thing - by Squire, C.” by Catherine Kohler Riessman, 300-301.
• “Health, Technology and Society: A Sociological Critique - by Webster, A” by Tiago Moreira, 301-302.
• “Sociologies of Disability and Illness - by Thomas, C.” by Sarah Cunningham-Burley, 302-303.
• “Disability Rights and Wrongs - by Shakespeare, T.” by Cassandra Phillips, 303-304.
• “Medicines and Society: Patients, Professionals and the Dominance of Pharmaceuticals - by Britten, N” by Paul Bissell, 304-305.
• “The Politics of Healthcare in Britain - by Harrison, S. and McDonald, R” by David J Hunter, 306-307.

VIII Brazilian Congress of Bioethics and the III Open Meeting of the Unesco’s Bioethics Education Program
Buzios, Rio de Janeiro
September 23 - 26.

For more information or to register, visit:  http://www.congressodebioetica2009.com.br

General Electric Co (GE.N) is teaming up with U.S. biotech company Geron Corp (GERN.O) to use stem cells to develop products that could give drug developers an early warning of whether new medicines are toxic. (Reuters)

Science journalism may be under threat but scientists can still help ensure that reporting is informed and accurate, says an editorial in Nature. Some scientists see the media as a public relations service to explain new science, shape public understanding and highlight a blooming research sector to politicians. (SciDev)

Matthew Brzica and his wife hardly noticed when the hospital took a few drops of blood from each of their four newborn children for routine genetic testing. But then they discovered that the state had kept the dried blood samples ever since — and was making them available to scientists for medical research. (Washington Post)

Understanding the biology of mental illness would be a paradigm shift in our thinking about mind. It would not only inform us about some of the most devastating diseases of humankind but, because these are diseases of thought and feeling, it would also tell us more about who we are and how we function. I naively thought we were on the verge of such a paradigm change in 1983, when James Gusella and Nancy Wexler were tracking down the gene that causes Huntington’s disease. I expected that within 10 years we would have found the major genes that contribute to schizophrenia, depression, and autism. Since then, there has been a lot of enthusiasm about genes and mental illness and some false starts, but surprisingly little progress. (Newsweek)

A recent Health Affairs article advances a set of ethical criteria for employer-based programs that penalize unhealthy behaviors. Given their growing prevalence and the ethical controversy they stir, the need for ethical guidance is urgent. The authors’ recommendations are thorough and thoughtful, but also have weaknesses that throw into question the practical utility of their guidelines and the ethical acceptability of penalty programs more basically. (Bioethics Forum)

The American Medical Association (AMA) is considering a national health insurer code of conduct, calling on the U.S. health insurance industry to adopt consistent practices regarding costs, business transparency and the physician-patient relationship. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution )

Trends in Biotechnology (Volume 27, Issue 7, July 2009) is now available by subscription only.

Articles Include:

• “Blood cell manufacture: current methods and future challenge” by Nicholas E. Timmins and Lars K. Nielsen, 415.
• “Production of self-assembling biomaterials for tissue engineering” by Stuart Kyle, Amalia Aggeli, Eileen Ingham, and Michael J. McPherson, 423.
• “Biotechnology under high pressure: applications and implications” by Abram Aertsen, Filip Meersman, Marc E.G. Hendrickx, Rudi F. Vogel, and Chris W. Michiels, 434.

Medicine, Health Care, and Philosophy (Volume 12, Number 3, August 2009) is now available by subscription only.

Articles Include:

• “From notions of health to causality” by Wim Dekkers and Bert Gordijn, 231-233.
• “On the relationship between individual and population health” by Onyebuchi A. Arah, 235-244.
• “International public health law: not so much WHO as why, and not enough WHO and why not?” by Shawn H. E. Harmon, 235-244.
• “Healthcare regulation as a tool for public accountability” by Rui Nunes, Guilhermina Rego and Cristina Brandão, 257-264.
• “Lifeworld-led healthcare is more than patient-led care: an existential view of well-being” by Karin Dahlberg, Les Todres and Kathleen Galvin, 265-271.
• “The ethical and political evaluation of biotechnology strategies” by Juha Räikkä, 273-280.
• “Under the pretence of autonomy: contradictions in the guidelines for human tissue donation” by Michael Steinmann, 281-289.
• “Rapport and respect: negotiating ethical relations between researcher and participant” by Marilys Guillemin and Kristin Heggen, 291-299.
• “The public funding of abortion in Canada: going beyond the concept of medical necessity” by Chris Kaposy, 301-311.
• “Content analysis of euthanasia policies of nursing homes in Flanders (Belgium)” by Joke Lemiengre, Bernadette Dierckx de Casterlé, Yvonne Denier, Paul Schotsmans and Chris Gastmans, 313-322.
• “Just love in live organ donation” by Kristin Zeiler, 323-331.
• “Causal criteria and the problem of complex causation” by Andrew Ward, 333-343.
• “Epidemiology and causation” by Leen De Vreese, 345-353.
• “The meaning of the opposition between the healthy and the pathological and its consequences” by Maël Lemoine, 355-362.

The American Public Health Association publishes an ethics newsletter with resources, job announcements, opportunities, and events.  The Spring 2009 issue can be accessed here.