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Ethics, Health & Society: Emerging Responsibilities

Vak
2023-2024

Admission requirements

Required course(s):

None, but any courses from the "Health & Development" and "Health Policy & Politics" tracks of the Global Public Health Major are recommended.

Description

This course will introduce students to major moral puzzles and challenges in the field of global public health. The first section of the course provides an introduction to key frameworks and concepts relevant to public health ethics and describes the overlap and distinctions between public health and medical ethics. The remainder of the course considers ethical dilemmas across the following domains: 1) resource allocation and distributive justice; 2) conflicts between individual rights and the common good; 3) health promotion & disease prevention; 4) tensions between market forces and social justice; and 5) research involving human subjects.

Based on above domains and drawing on interdisciplinary perspectives, case studies from the fields of science and technology, energy and environment, agriculture, information and communication, reproductive and biomedical technologies, human enhancement, and biosecurity will be examined.

Course Objectives

Skills:

  • Critically evaluate methods and techniques used in global health ethics studies and related disciplines to address issues of health, and society

  • Develop self-awareness of personal values and biases and their effect on ethical practice

  • Describe how your understanding of ethics has grown and how you will apply your learning as a moral agent with the power and skills to participate in ethical decision making

Knowledge:

  • Describe important historical events that have shaped ethical guidelines for public health research and practice

  • Reflect upon the impact of social and biological determinants of health, available resources, and the perspectives of community stakeholders when deciding on ethical courses of action

Timetable

Timetables for courses offered at Leiden University College in 2023-2024 will be published on this page of the e-Prospectus.

Mode of instruction

Methods of Instruction: Lecture, discussions, media viewing, among others.

Assessment Method

  • Critical reflection – pre/mid/post course reflection. Two minutes' video, 19% (week 1, Week 4, Week 8)

  • Group project, 30% - design a creative project that engages with the ethical dimensions of the course or your experience. The project can take the form of a paper, poster, short story, video, policy brief, grant proposal, business redesign, or series of interviews, among other things. Due week 7.

  • Individual Assignment 19%, case study presentation (weekly presentation)

  • Written final Exam 32%, Week 8.

Reading list

Ortmann, Leonard W., et al. "Public Health Ethics: Global Cases, Practice, and Context." Public Health Ethics: Cases Spanning the Globe. Springer, Cham, 2016. Link: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-23847-0_1

Registration

Courses offered at Leiden University College (LUC) are usually only open to LUC students and LUC exchange students. Leiden University students who participate in one of the university’s Honours tracks or programmes may register for one LUC course, if availability permits. Registration is coordinated by the Education Coordinator, course.administration@luc.leidenuniv.nl.

Contact

Dr. Min Jung Cho, m.j.cho@luc.leidenuniv.nl

Remarks

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