Course Title: Biomedical Ethics (PHIL 2130-01; Fall 2004)
Subject: Conceptual, cultural, and ethical issues in medicine, health policy, and biotechnology
Location/Time: Murrah Hall 111, MWF 10:00am
Texts: Intervention and Reflection: Basic Issues in Medical Ethics 7th ed., Ronald Munson, ed.
Instructor: Dr. Patrick Hopkins, Dept. of Philosophy
Office: Christian Center 19
Office Phone: 974-1293
Office hours: by appointment
Email: hopkipd@millsaps.edu

Course Description: This will be an introductory course on conceptual and ethical issues in medicine, health policy, biomedical research, and biotechnology. We will examine major conceptual issues such as the definitions of life, death, consent, and personhood, and major ethical issues including abortion, euthanasia, genetic engineering, reproductive technology, patients' rights, the right to die, AIDS testing, human and animal research, the ownership of medical information, patenting new organisms, religion and bioethics, organ transplant policies, cloning, and healthcare rights.

Class will consist of assigned readings, homeworks, lectures, class discussions, student decision committees, and committee reports. Students must keep up with the readings, must participate in class, and must attend committee meetings or class will be an unpleasant experience.

Course Requirements:

Grades: Grades will be based on a cumulative 100 point scale distributed as follows:

Homeworks 10 points (p/f) A 90-100 points
Committee Work 25 points (5 pts each) B 80-89 points
Test 1 25 points C 70-79 points
Test 2 25 points D 60-69 points
IRB attendance 5 points F 0-59 points
Final Poster Session 10 points

Tests: There will be 2 take-home tests. Each will cover the material we have talked about in class and/or you have been assigned to read. Each test will be composed of 3 short essay questions. The tests will emphasize your ability to explain the issues and to argue for your position. These essays will NOT simply be your opinions, but rather an argument explaining the reasons you have for your position. On the day the test is assigned, I will give you a list of 5 essay questions, from which you must choose 3 for the test. There will be no surprises. MAKE-UP TESTS ARE NOT GIVEN EXCEPT IN EXTREME CIRCUMSTANCES. ANY MAKE-UP TESTS WILL BE DIFFERENT AND HARDER THAN THE ORIGINAL TEST.

Homeworks: Throughout the semester, there will be 5 homeworks assigned (of various sorts). The homeworks are worth 2 points each and are graded on a pass/fail basis. If you do the work as required and turn in the work on time, you get the points. Late homeworks are not accepted except in extreme circumstance and then only with proper documentation (such as physician's notes).

Committee Work and Reports: 6 times during the semester, the class will be divided into groups of 3-4 people, with the membership of these groups changing each time. A chair for each committee will be randomly assigned who will facilitate meeting times. The purpose of these groups is to simulate a hospital (or similar) bioethics committee. After being divided up, the committees will be assigned one or more case studies to examine, based on some major issue we have recently discussed. Each committee assignment will have a handout to go with it that will describe what you should do. Each committee will have to produce a final typed report on their decision and the reasons for their decisions. Instructions on the report will be included on the handout.

The committee meetings will take place outside class. You will have to organize a time to meet outside class. The meeting should take at least an hour. You are totally responsible for making your meeting. If you miss your committee, too bad.

There will be 6 committee assignments during the semester. However, each student is only responsible for participating in and writing the final reports of 5 committees. The purpose of this is to give everyone 1 "freebie." That is, in case you have to miss class for medical reasons or other unexpected reasons, you won't be penalized for missing 1 committee assignment. However, there is only 1 freebie. If you miss more than 1 committee day-tough luck.

Reports are worth 5 points each for a total of 25 points of your final grade. Each report will graded strictly on whether the assignment was completed and taken seriously-not on the decision made. Just do the work and you get the points.

IRB Attendance: At least once during the semester each student is required to attend a meeting of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the University of Mississippi Medical Center on which I serve. This board goes over all proposals for scientific research using human subjects at UMC. The board's purpose is to protect subjects.

Poster Session: Toward the end of class, everyone will have to produce a poster explaining the ethical issues associated with some particular biomedical or biotech issue. These posters will be presented publicly in the student center with the author standing beside their poster to take questions for one hour during lunch. The posters will remain displayed for two days.

Course Policies:

Reading Assignments: There are near-daily reading assignments for this class. You should make every effort to read what is assigned. Remember, class discussion is a large part of this class. I will not simply lecture. Students may be asked questions at random.

Attendance Policy: You have 3 free absence days, meaning you can miss up to 3 classes without penalty. Every missed class (without proper official physician's excuse) after that will cost you 2 points off of your final grade (of the 100 total points).

Late committee assignments/reports: Late group discussion reports are accepted only in the case of extreme circumstances such as medical emergency. In this case, documentation must prove medical problems and in any case, the student will be docked one point per day late. In short, make every effort not to turn in any late reports. There is no way to benefit from turning reports in late.

Make-up tests and assignments: A) Committee work cannot be made up, because the committee has already met. You have one freebie. If you miss more than this, your grade will suffer. B) No make-up tests will be given except in extreme circumstances-for example, alien abduction. Regardless of circumstance, any make-up test will be harder than the original.

Written Work by email: You must send me all your homeworks, take-home tests, and any other appropriate materials by email, as either a MS Word doc or the text of an email. I do not want to receive any materials in class.

Contacting me: Feel free to call me at the Philosophy dept., to leave messages on my voice-mail, to come by my office during office hours, to see me immediately after class, to make appointments to see me, or to email me. I'm here to discuss anything about the class with you. Make use of that.

Grading on Product: I grade your tests and your reports on the finished product. I do not grade for effort. So, if you spend 134 hours studying for a test and still get a bad grade, do not tell me how long and hard you studied. Such information is irrelevant. You are graded on what you turn in.

Withdrawal from Class: If you cannot follow course policies or you find yourself doing poorly, you may wish to withdraw from the class. I freely give permission to withdraw regardless of reason. You don't have to justify anything. Keep in mind, however, the college's withdrawal deadlines (at end of syllabus). Withdrawal after the deadlines results in penalties.

Incompletes: Incompletes are given ONLY if the student is unable to complete the course requirements because of extreme circumstances beyond their control, such as emergency medical problems. In such circumstances, students will be required to sign a contract specifying what they must do to complete the course (which will require additional work over the course's normal requirements). Failure to comply with the requirements of the contract will result in an F for the class. Incompletes automatically convert to Fs at the end of the semester following the semester in which the I was received.

Disability/Special Needs Students: If a student has a disability and requires special services for the class, they should contact me right away. If they do not contact me very early in the course, their needs may not be met. Any student with such needs must have official forms from the Dean's Office describing their special requirements.

Cheating/Plagiarism: Any instance of cheating or plagiarism is punishable by failing the course and being brought up before the Honor Council.

All course policies apply directly to you. If your schedule/circumstances makes it impossible for you to abide by course policies, then you should withdraw from this class.

GENERAL SCHEDULE

DATES SUBJECTS AND EVENTS READINGS
AUGUST 25 W " Introduction to Class
" Ethical Theory and Applied Ethics none
27 F " Utilitarianism & Kantianism p. 742-757
30 M " Ross
" Natural Law
" Moral Principles p. 757-761; 766-783

SEPTEMBER 1 W " Life and Death none
3 F " Personhood none
6 M " Abortion p. 560-583
Bible: Genesis 38:24 ; Exodus 21:22-23; Job 31:15; Psalms 22:9-10; Psalms 139:13-16; Isaiah 44:24
8 W " Abortion (basic objection) p. 583-587 (Noonan)
10 F " Abortion (nature of rights to life)
" COMMITTEE WORK #1 ASSIGNED p. 587-596 (Thomson)
13 M " Abortion (personhood)
" COMMITTEE WORK #1 DUE NOON p. 596-604 (Warren)
14 T " IRB meeting 4:00 pm
15 W " Impaired Infants p. 631-653 (into and Robertson)
17 F " Impaired Infants
" COMMITTEE WORK #2 ASSIGNED p. 653-658 (Engelhardt)
20 M " Euthanasia
" COMMITTEE WORK #2 DUE NOON p. 687-708 (intro)
22 W " Euthanasia (concepts)
" Maguire p. 720-723 (Rachels)
24 F " Euthanasia p. 708-716 (Gay-Williams, Callahan)
27 M " Euthanasia p. 716-721; 730-732 (Lachs, Bristow)
28 T " IRB meeting 4:00 pm
29 W " Physicians & Patients
" Including race and gender p. 100-120; 124-125; 254-258 (Intro, Goering)

October 1 F " Physicians & Patients (paternalism and patient autonomy)
" TEST #1 ASSIGNED p. 126-139 (Dworkin, Cowart & Burt)
4 M " Physicians & Patients (pregnancy responsibility)
" DEBATE p. 120-125; 145-154 (Capron, Robertson & Schulman)
6 W " Research Ethics
" TEST #1 DUE BY EMAIL by NOON p. 2-41 (Intro)
8 F " Research Ethics (clinical trials) p. 62-70 (Hellmans, Passamani)
11 M " Research Ethics (animal welfare) p. 81-93 (Singer & Cohen)
12 T " IRB meeting 4:00 pm
13 W " Research Ethics (HIV) p. 201-207 (Annas & Grodin, Bagenda & Museko-Mudido)
15 F " Research Ethics (tainted research)
" Maguire ST:VOY video
18 M FALL BREAK
20 W " Healthcare & rights (gov't duties)
" Maguire" p. 507-541 (Intro, President's Commission, Buchanan)
22 F " Healthcare & rights (physician duties)
" COMMITTEE WORK #3 ASSIGNED p. 542-546 (Angell)
25 M " Allocating medical resources
" COMMITTEE WORK #3 DUE NOON p. 451-475 (Intro)
26 " IRB meeting 4:00 pm
27 W " Allocating medical resources p. 475-483; 485-489 (Rescher, Spital & Erin)
29 F " Allocating medical resources
" COMMITTEE WORK #4 ASSIGNED p. 490-493 (Phadke & Anandh)

NOVEMBER 1 M " Reproductive Technology
" COMMITTEE WORK #4 DUE NOON p. 365-393 (Intro)
3 W " Reproductive Technology p. 393-403 (Congregation, Hanscombe)
5 F " Reproductive Technology p. 404-417 (Cohen, Klotzko)
8 M " Reproductive Technology (surrogacy)
" Maguire p. 418-431 (Steinbock, Anderson)
9 T " IRB meeting 4:00 pm
10 W " Reproductive Technology (cloning) p. 433-446 (Kass, NBAC)
12 F " Stem Cells
" TALK ABOUT POSTER TOPICS
" COMMITTEE WORK #5 ASSIGNED p. 275-279; 318-321 (Pontifical Academy, Wilson)
15 M " Genetics
" FINALIZE POSTER TOPICS
" COMMITTEE WORK #5 DUE NOON p. 279-313 (Intro)
17 W " Genetics (testing)
" RESEARCH POSTER TOPICS p. 321-324; 338-343 (Hubbard, Purdy)
19 F " Genetics (counseling)
" WORK ON POSTERS! p. 328-337 (D. Davis)
22 M " Genetics (engineering)
" WORK ON POSTERS! p. 351-360; Munson & L. Davis)
23 T " IRB meeting 4:00 pm
24 W " Enhancement
" WORK ON POSTERS! Handout-Parens
26 F THANKSGIVING HOLIDAYS
29 M " Enhancement
" POSTERS ON DISPLAY!!! Noon through tomorrow afternoon
" COMMITTEE WORK #6 ASSIGNED Handout-Wachbroit & Wasserman

DECEMBER 1 W " Enhancement and Theology Handout-Verhey
3 F " Open day
" COMMITTEE WORK #6 DUE NOON
" TEST #2 ASSIGNED
7 T " Final
" TEST #2 DUE BY EMAIL BY NOON