Bioethics: what is it?

Writer: Riya Misra

Defining the discipline

To define the term “bioethics”, it separates into two parts—”bio” and “ethics”.

"Ethics" refers to the philosophical discipline pertaining to notions of good and bad—our moral life in community; it is the identification, study, and resolution or mitigation of conflicts among competing values or goals. The ethical question is, “What should we do, all things considered?”. Meanwhile, The “bio” puts the ethical question into a particular context, including biology and medicine.

From the broader construct, bioethics consider aspects from medical law, medical anthropology, medical sociology, health politics, and health economics. The field addresses a broad swathe of human inquiry, ranging from debates over the boundaries of life (e.g. abortion, euthanasia), surrogacy, the allocation of scarce health care resources (e.g. organ donation, health care rationing) to the right to refuse medical care for religious or cultural reason.

Its approach

In engaging in bioethical discussions, there are multiple disciplines required to develop to clear scope of the topic for debate. During analysis of an bioethical problem, it is important to involve doctors in the conversation, as they can describe the scientific facts and the consequences of following one or another scenario. Similarly, lawyers are needed for legal aspects while philosophers provide different values and conflicting points of view. These disciplines all collaborate and are equally involved in determining the "right" course of action when there is uncertainty and conflicting values within the medical and biological field.

Life as a bioethicist

Alike many other professions, bioethicists require highly trained skills and academic accreditations. They typically hold a graduate degree in bioethics or a related discipline, such as philosophy, law or public health.

They work for a diverse range of institutions, including universities, medical centres, government agencies, and private organisations.

The profession mainly consists of conducting research on ethical, social, and legal issues arising in biomedicine, teaching courses or seminars, helping draft institutional policies and serving on ethics committees to provide consultation and advice.

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Sources:

Flynn, Jennifer. “Theory and Bioethics.” Wed November 25, 2020

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/theory-bioethics/

Medscape. “What Is Medical Ethics, and Why Is It Important?”

https://www.medscape.com/courses/section/898060

Chadwik, Ruth and Schuklenk, Udo. “Wiley Online Library Bioethics” 2019

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/146785192