Joint Centre for Bioethics News

Canadian Original: A doctor with a patient's perspective

Thu, 2 Feb 2012 11:19:25 -0500

"CTV National News: Part healer, part philosopher" Named Physician of the Year, Philip Hebert's deep understanding of his patients is what sets this doctor apart. Medical Specialist Avis Favaro has this Canadian Original's story.

Sex selection is a complex issue with many nuances

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:17:52 -0500

The notion that sex selection – selective abortion of fetuses of female gender – is being practised in some ethnic communities in Canada comes as a shock to many. In response, Rajendra Kale, interim editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal, has called for a ban on disclosing the sex of a fetus until 30 weeks, at which point it is difficult to obtain an abortion.

Sex selection migrates to Canada

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:16:17 -0500

Easy access to abortion and advances in prenatal sex determination have combined to make Canada a haven for parents who would terminate female fetuses in favour of having sons, despite overwhelming censure of the practice, economists and bioethics experts say.

Testing the ethics of genetic testing in sports

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 10:50:47 -0500

CMAJ News

Canada should legalize assisted death, report says

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 12:01:40 -0500

Canadians in dire health who have decided their life is not worth living should be able to choose how and when they die, an expert panel recommended Tuesday.

RSC Expert Panel Report: End-of-Life Decision Making

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:59:53 -0500

From Lab to Village

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:04:12 -0500

Shocking inequities drove Toronto doctors Peter Singer and Abdallah Daar to work on giving a child born in Africa the same life expectancy as one born in Canada.

Useful Links Update: Research Funding Opportunities

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 15:58:56 -0500

University of Toronto Research: Research Funding Opportunities

Grandest Challenge: The Toronto-born crusade to cure the world’s sick

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 10:00:55 -0400

Toronto academics, Drs. Abdallah Daar and Peter Singer have written a book on how to extend the life expectancy of people in the developing world.

Fighting academic frauds

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 10:31:51 -0400

A McGill prof was reprimanded for ghostwriting. How would U of T handle a similar case?

The assisted suicide dilemma

Fri, 16 Sep 2011 10:29:52 -0400

Professor Udo Schuklenk, a philosopher from Queen’s University, talked to Marina Jimenez of the Globe and Mail editorial board. He is chair of the Royal Society’s committee on end-of-life decision-making in Canada. The committee, which will release a lengthy report this fall, spent two years studying this issue, and the experience of other countries which have decriminalized assisted suicide.

PHAC to publicly disclose conflicts of interest of external experts on advisory panels

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 10:52:38 -0400

PHAC Media Relations Advisor Charlene Wiles writes in an email that the agency requires external experts to privately disclose "real, potential or perceived situations of conflict of interest, prior to providing service, and during their term of service," and that it is currently developing a policy for public disclosure of information about advisory committee members.

How Scientific Literature Has Become Part of Big Pharma's Marketing Machine and How Being Nice Hurts Canada

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 11:21:38 -0400

How Scientific Literature Has Become Part of Big Pharma's Marketing Machine and How Being Nice Hurts Canada: 5 Questions with Ghostwriting Expert Trudo Lemmens

Reversal on drug trial disclosure policy draws fire

Fri, 3 Jun 2011 15:43:28 -0400

The federal government’s medical-research funding agency has scrapped a new policy that required public disclosure of detailed drug-trial results, provoking international criticism and suggestions that the body buckled to pressure from pharmaceutical companies.

DNA diviners: Valuable service or dangerous novelty?

Wed, 1 Jun 2011 12:53:04 -0400

Article by Joseph Hall, Health Reporter

Internal organs next commodity boom?

Wed, 4 May 2011 10:21:04 -0400

Are Canada’s donor organs and its renowned transplant experts commodities the whole world should have access to — or a precious resource for residents only?

Proceedings of the Canadian Pandemic Preparedness Meeting: Outcomes, Impacts and Lessons Learned

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:36:22 -0400

The final report for the Canadian Pandemic Preparedness Meeting has been posted on the CIHR website.

Canada teams with Gates Foundation to fight newborn deaths

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 10:25:00 -0500

Canada will join an international group of foreign-aid heavyweights Wednesday to launch a new initiative aimed at stemming the alarming number of deaths of newborns and their mothers in the developing world.

No-fault compensation urged for those injured by vaccines

Fri, 18 Feb 2011 10:14:45 -0500

Canada needs to correct a fundamental injustice by creating a no-fault compensation plan for those who are severely harmed by vaccines, a study concludes.

Useful Links Update

Fri, 1 Oct 2010 16:39:26 -0400

"CanadaGE3LS (Research Projects on the Societal Aspects of Genomics)"

WHO to declare H1N1 pandemic over

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 09:41:55 -0400

Intensity of outbreaks has been reduced and virus is no longer as dominant as it once was

Investment executive Bill Holland donates record $20 million to Bloorview Kids Rehab

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 12:36:01 -0400

$2-billion mass flu immunization program a bust, figures reveal

Thu, 10 Jun 2010 15:44:00 -0400

Health officials blame communication breakdown as new figures show shockingly low H1N1 vaccination rates, raising questions about Canada's pandemic planning

What are the ethics of jumping the queue to avoid the flu?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009 11:02:56 -0500

Globe and Mail - Toronto,Ontario,Canada
Ethicists such as Ross Upshur, director of the University of Toronto's Joint Centre for Bioethics, say that, if governments want the public to co-operate ...

Announcement from Trillium Health Centre

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:29:52 -0400

Appointment of Dianne Godkin as Senior Ethicist

Pandemic of Indecency

Wed, 9 Sep 2009 16:40:01 -0400

CBC Radio, September 9, 2009 - Dr. Ross Upshur, Director, Joint Centre for Bioethics, discusses the 'pandemic of indecency' on CBC Radio's The Current.

Should Canada share its swine flu drugs?

Wed, 5 Aug 2009 14:46:23 -0400

Toronto Star, August 5, 2009 - Antiviral-rich nation pushed by ethicists to help poor countries.

British couple's decision to die together sets dangerous precedent: critics

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 14:10:52 -0400

CanWest News, July 15, 2009 - "If people feel they would like to stay on, but the balance of burden has tipped too much toward other people...they may not really so much want to end their life," says Kerry Bowman, a professor at the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics.

Swine flu fears spur Canada to stock up on ventilators

Thu, 9 Jul 2009 11:29:43 -0400

Globe & Mail, July 9, 2009 - "...because this flu disproportionately hits younger people, it has become a choice of giving them to one young person or another young person, Dr. Upshur said. This is a scenario that no one had actually anticipated."

Facilitating innovation in the clinical setting: a pathway for operationalizing accountability

Wed, 8 Jul 2009 14:19:59 -0400

Healthcare Quarterly 2009; 12(3):60-5. An article by Randi Zlotnik Shaul, Maria McDonald and Jacob C. Langer

Why are a percentage of health workers unwilling to work during a pandemic?

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:12:53 -0400

Elements: Environmental Health Intelligence, June 22, 2009 - "...the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics created a framework based on the SARS outbreak experience."

Announcement from Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:45:05 -0400

Shawn Winsor has been appointed as the new Director of the Ethics Centre at Sunnybrook.

Swine flu of 1976: Lessons from the past

Tue, 9 Jun 2009 14:46:55 -0400

Bulletin of the World Health Organization, June 2009 - Interview with Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg, President, Institute of Medicine (USA)

Researchers looking for answers

Tue, 9 Jun 2009 11:37:23 -0400

Telegraph Journal, May 30, 2009 - Ethics Group getting opinions on how to save lives when pandemic strikes

75 years after Dionne quints' birth, modern multiples still making headlines

Thu, 28 May 2009 09:34:20 -0400

The Canadian Press, May 27, 2009 - "[Shawn] Winsor cautions that it's quite another for couples to imagine that big, instant families are an achievable goal based on "glowing" depictions in the media."

One person's pain could cure a disease

Wed, 20 May 2009 08:55:33 -0400

Toronto Star, May 20, 2009 - "There is an altruistic element to most vaccination programs", says Angus Dawson, a visiting senior research fellow at University of Toronto's Joint Centre for Bioethics.

"7th revision of the Declaration of Helsinki: Good news for the transparency of clinical trials"

Tue, 5 May 2009 09:54:12 -0400

An editorial in the Croatian Medical Journal 2009; 50(2):105-10 by Karmela Krleza-Jeric and Trudo Lemmens.

Swine flu's arrival will test Canada's readiness

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 11:18:31 -0400

National Post, April 29, 2009 - "The last thing you want is arguments at the door of the intensive care unit between relatives who have sick patients and busy, overburdened clinicians," says Dr. Ross Upshur, Director of the University of Toronto's Joint Centre for Bioethics.

"Swine flu outbreak tests Canadian preparedness"

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 14:15:22 -0400

Early release of CMAJ article.

WHO Collaborating Centres: The JCB

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:22:26 -0400

Item on the JCB in the WHO's Ethics and Health Unit newsletter, Spring 2009, Issue 2, page 1.

"Apocalypse or redemption: responding to extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis"

Thu, 2 Apr 2009 14:07:27 -0500

From the Bulletin of the World Health Organization an e-publication ahead of print. Authors: Ross Upshur, Jerome Singh, Nathan Ford.

"Team Strength" Dalla Lana School of Public Health

Thu, 8 Jan 2009 09:31:39 -0500

UToronto Medicine, December 2008 - A look at a small sample of the incredible faculty members at the Dalla Lana School (including JCB Director, Ross Upshur, pg. 11) and how they are leading us all towards a healthier future.

CBC Radio One podcast "White Coat, Black Art" hosted by Dr. Brian Goldman

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 12:48:08 -0500

Nov. 10/08 podcast - Dr. Brian Goldman talks to a family doc and a bioethicist, Dr. Philip Hebert, about deception and medicine.

Boosting flu shots decreases hospital stays, deaths

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:28:41 -0400

In a study published in the open-access journal PLoS Medicine, researchers found that the number of flu-related deaths in the province dropped 40 per cent after Ontario introduced its universal flu shot program eight years ago

Public Health Ethics journal launch press release

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 10:22:49 -0400

Public Health Ethics (PHE), a new peer-reviewed, international journal was officially launched at the 9th World Congress of Bioethics.

From Human Embryos to Interspecies Creations: Ethical and Legal Uncertainties Surrounding the Creation of Cytoplasmic Hybrids for Research

Thu, 9 Oct 2008 14:32:03 -0400

New article by Ubaka Ogbogu, Tim Caulfield and Shane Green published in Medical Law International

Ross Upshur - Academic Family Physician of the Year

Wed, 1 Oct 2008 15:29:35 -0400

An interview with Ross Upshur, Director, Joint Centre for Bioethics, in the University of Toronto Department of Family & Community Medicine newsletter "Family Ties" on page 9.

Human Genomic Variation Studies in Developing Countries

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:51:43 -0400

A series of articles have been published on genomic medicine in developing countries, focusing on four case studies on Mexico, India, Thailand and South Africa, as a special supplement to the October issue of Nature Reviews Genetics.

"Living Will, Living Well: Reflections on Preparing an Advance Directive"

Tue, 9 Sep 2008 15:47:05 -0400

Book by clinical ethicist Dianne Godkin, explores end-of-life issues and emotions that arise when a person sets out to prepare an advance directive.

Doing Right: A Practical Guide to Ethics for Medical Trainees and Physicians

Wed, 3 Sep 2008 14:21:04 -0400

This second edition of Philip Hébert's "Doing Right" offers health care trainees and practitioners alike a comprehensive, usable guide to biomedical ethics today.

Earlier harvesting of hearts stirs ethics debate

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:55:34 -0400

Under a fairly new and controversial approach, families are being asked to allow organs to be taken after cardiac death.

CMA's Dr. William Marsden Award in Medical Ethics to be Given to Dr. Philip Hebert

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 09:41:17 -0400

Dr. Hebert has played a pivotal leadership role in the development of an integrated and practical professional ethics education for medical trainees and physicians.

When brain death isn't terminal

Mon, 7 Jul 2008 15:35:25 -0400

The case of a revived 'brain-dead' accident victim raises some disturbing issues

Fake pills for kids stir controversy

Thu, 3 Jul 2008 15:12:22 -0400

Doctors raise fears Obecalp, a new children's placebo, will condition them to look for cures in pills

Patient gets brain surgery - fully awake

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:02:51 -0400

Open-skull operations on waking outpatients are but one marvel for an elite local unit

Open wide and say, 'AAAART!'

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 14:58:30 -0400

For 200 years, medicine had little use for the arts. As a recent conference showed, that's changing.

1st Annual Sue MacRae Lecture on Ethics and Patient-Centred Care

Thu, 5 Jun 2008 09:28:20 -0400

Making Tough Decisions Together: A family's perspective of the vital importance of ethics and patient-centred care

Global Health Ethics: An emerging concept

Fri, 30 May 2008 16:11:27 -0400

The challenge of achieving improved health for a greater proportion of the world's population is arguably one of the most pressing moral problems of our time and is starkly illustrated by the threat of infectious diseases.

The Story About Narrative

Tue, 1 Apr 2008 14:00:22 -0400

A discussion about the Narrative Ethics Group and the projects that are underway.

What is 'Public Health Ethics'?

Thu, 8 May 2008 11:51:01 -0400

If we are serious about defending public health activities from the traditional criticisms drawn from the direction of medical ethics, then we need to think about how we can justify a more community-orientated approach to ethics.

New Publication: The Cambridge Textbook of Bioethics

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 15:29:27 -0400

This book project was incubated at the JCB. Dr. Ross Upshur, Director thinks The Cambridge Textbook of Bioethics will become the definitive textbook for clinicians (including physicians, nurses, and all allied health professionals), and also for students in a wide variety of fields related to bioethics.

Experts Urge Strongest Isolation For New Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis Cases Appearing In South Africa

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 12:53:52 -0400

Medical ethics and other experts say tough isolation measures, involuntary if need be, are justified to contain very deadly, highly-contagious and drug-resistant mutant strains of tuberculosis and to prevent "a potentially explosive international health crisis" brewing most dangerously in South Africa.

Working for an Ethical Future: The First Decade of the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics (PDF)

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:47:39 -0400

In just a decade, the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics (JCB) has grown to be one of the major bioethics centres in the world. This 10-year report examines the JCB in detail.

An Ethical Tango With Television

Mon, 5 Nov 2007 12:52:40 -0400

The Joint Centre for Bioethics Undergraduate Initiative recently hosted a discussion session investigating the tricky relationship between ethics and the media.

Recommendations for Establishing a Citizen's Council to Guide Drug Policy in Ontario (PDF)

Wed, 1 Nov 2006 13:01:16 -0400

A report published by the University of Toronto Priority Setting in Health Care Research Group.

Just Regionalisation: Rehabilitating Care for People with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses

Tue, 29 Aug 2006 13:05:21 -0400

The the authors use the Canadian province of Ontario as a case study, which examines the ethics of regionalisation and the implications for people with disabilities and chronic illnesses.

A Journal on the Rocks

Sun, 30 Apr 2006 13:45:55 -0400

There is often a rocky relationship between journals and their owners. Journal editors have a responsibility to publish controversial articles that promote debate. For medical associations, controversial articles sometimes conflict with the association's positions.

A Better Way to Recruit Organ Donors

Wed, 12 Apr 2006 13:38:58 -0400

Everyone expects to receive a kidney, liver or heart if they need a transplant, but not everyone is willing to donate an organ for transplant when they die. In Ontario, only about one in three eligible potential donors become actual organ donors -- a far cry from the target of 75% that has been achieved in many U.S. hospitals.

Pandemic Planning

Thu, 30 Mar 2006 13:11:58 -0400

The distribution and division of power across several regional governments in federal systems can hinder national and international efforts to control infectious disease outbreaks, says a team of researchers.

Organ Donation after Cardiac Death: A Panel Discussion of the Ethical Issues

Wed, 29 Mar 2006 13:33:04 -0400

Jennifer Gibson moderators this webcast discussion with 8 distinguished panelists.

Amid Growing Public Concerns, Bioscience Firms Begin Formalizing Ethical Decision-Making Practices

Tue, 28 Mar 2006 13:09:25 -0400

Pharmaceutical, biotechnology and bio-agricultural companies, grappling with an array of complex ethical issues, are gradually formalizing systematic approaches to ethical decision-making, according to a two-year study by leading international ethics and biosciences researchers.

Expanding Biotechnology Research in Developing Countries Key to Countering Bioterrorism

Mon, 20 Feb 2006 13:40:47 -0400

Experts at the Canadian Program on Genomics and Global Health warn that global efforts to combat bioterrorism are on a potential collision course with legitimate biotechnology pursuits that hold the promise of improving life for millions of the world's poorest people.

Working Together Against Bioterror

Thu, 2 Feb 2006 13:31:05 -0400

The U.S. National Research Council and Institute of Medicine of the National Academies released its report on Globalization, Biosecurity, and the Future of Life Sciences. Peter Singer served on the committee that wrote this report, which examines the chilling prospect of next-generation bio-weapons being used, and recommends ways to prevent it.

The State of the JCB Address

Wed, 18 Jan 2006 13:43:24 -0400

Peter Singer, MD, MPH, FRCPSC, Sun Life Chair in Bioethics and Director, University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics gives the yearly review of JCB activities in this webcast event.

U of T-led Ethics Network to Help Guide Grand Challenges in Global Health Initiative

Wed, 18 Jan 2006 13:48:14 -0400

Experts to identify and devise ways to address potential ethical, social and cultural issues.

Dear Bono...

Fri, 2 Dec 2005 13:50:08 -0400

Peter Singer writes an open letter to Bono in the National Post regarding PM Paul Martin's pledge to devote a percentage of Canada's research-and-development spending to challenges facing the developing world.

Think Small

Tue, 22 Nov 2005 13:52:16 -0400

Just as Canada responded to the threat of SARS by sequencing the DNA of the SARS virus, we can respond to the challenge of safe drinking water using our expertise in the emerging field of nanotechnology.

Ethics in a Pandemic

Mon, 21 Nov 2005 13:55:55 -0400

An international medical ethics think-tank says that all-important public cooperation and the coordination of public officials at all levels requires open and ethical decision making.

Race: A risk genetics must run

Wed, 29 Jun 2005 14:02:19 -0400

Medical Ethicists Abdallah S. Daar and Peter A. Singer see why last Saturday's cover story (in The Globe and Mail) by Carolyn Abraham touched a nerve. Research that targets specific groups is open to abuse, they admit, but how can science ignore the opportunity to do so much good?

Paul Martin's 5% Solution

Wed, 29 Jun 2005 14:00:07 -0400

As the July 6 G8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, approaches, Prime Minister Paul Martin is under increasing pressure to adopt the widely embraced target of devoting 0.7% of GDP to foreign aid.

Conflicts Pitting Doctors vs. Patients/Kin Over Treatment Decisions is #1 Issue in Medical Ethics Today, Canadian Experts Say

Mon, 20 Jun 2005 14:04:14 -0400

The biggest issue in medical ethics today is the growing occurrence of conflict between health care providers, their patients and patients' families over treatment options, according to Canadian medical ethicists in a survey published today.

Canada Needs Therapeutic Cloning

Tue, 24 May 2005 14:15:23 -0400

Peter Singer discusses why Canadians must rethink laws prohibiting therapeutic cloning or Canadians may end up sicker and poorer a decade from now.

Ethics Gaining Prominence in Hospitals

Mon, 9 May 2005 14:17:18 -0400

Thanks to ethicists from the Joint Centre for Bioethics, ethics is becoming part of the corporate culture at a number of Toronto-area hospitals.

Health Care Ethics Practical, Smart: Study

Mon, 2 May 2005 14:18:33 -0400

Health care ethics gained the limelight during the recent battle over Terry Schiavo's fate, but ethical decision-making is already a growing part of the corporate culture at a number of Toronto hospitals, thanks to a "hub and spokes" strategy pioneered by the University of Toronto's Joint Centre for Bioethics.

Little Answers to the World's Biggest Problems

Thu, 31 Mar 2005 14:21:25 -0400

Global experts rank the Top 10 Nanotechnology Applications to aid the poor, report says.

Learning from Terri Schiavo

Mon, 21 Mar 2005 14:23:24 -0400

Although medical conditions such as Schiavo's are unavoidable, the ugly feuds that surround them can be prevented if people talk to their loved ones about what they would want if medical circumstances render them unable to make their own decisions.

End Monopoly of Economists as Development Policy Advisors; Put Science at Center of Decision-Making, Experts Tell UN

Thu, 6 Jan 2005 14:26:56 -0400

Science and technology is so critically important to improving conditions in poor countries that scientific advisors should join economists at the center of government policy-making on development issues, an eminent group of 27 international experts says in a landmark report to the United Nations.

Biotechnology and Human Security (PDF)

Wed, 5 Jan 2005 14:08:00 -0400

Helsinki Process Papers on Human Security. Human security is compromised by disease, hunger, poverty, environmental damage and physical threats. In this paper, Abdallah Daar and Peter Singer explore these threats in relation to biotechnology's potential to ameliorate them or, in some instances, to make them worse.

Ethics in Health Care

Mon, 3 Jan 2005 14:25:29 -0400

To help resolve issues between clinical staff, patients and families, hospitals are increasingly turning to ethicists. Bioethics involves critical reflection on ethical issues in health-care settings towards deciding what we should do, why we should do it and how we should do it.

Fair Decisions More Important When Hospitals Face Crisis like SARS

Wed, 15 Dec 2004 14:34:17 -0400

Embroiled in an emergency like a deadly infectious disease outbreak, hospital managers and staff may consider saving time by suspending or modifying normal decision making procedures, new report states.

Health Biotechnology Innovations in Developing Countries

Mon, 29 Nov 2004 14:36:28 -0400

Cuba, South Africa, India, China, and Brazil are among developing countries with the recipe for thriving Health Biotechnology Industries, which are saving lives, researchers say in three-year, first-ever study.

Clinical Education of Ethicists: The Role of a Clinical Ethics Fellowship (PDF)

Mon, 8 Nov 2004 14:42:58 -0400

Although clinical ethicists are becoming more prevalent in healthcare settings, their required training and education have not been clearly delineated. Most agree that training and education are important, but their nature and delivery remain topics of debate. One option is through completion of a clinical ethics fellowship. In this paper, the first four fellows to complete a newly developed fellowship program at the JCB discuss their experiences.

Report: How 10 Top New Technologies Will Help World Reach Globally-Agreed Goals by 2015

Mon, 4 Oct 2004 14:38:28 -0400

Biotechnology breakthroughs promise to save millions of lives per year. Experts call for global body to better use knowledge worldwide.

How Long Must We Wait?

Wed, 25 Aug 2004 14:47:42 -0400

Prime Minister Paul Martin made the reduction of health care waiting lists a centrepiece of his recent election campaign. When the premiers meet with Mr. Martin next month, they should work toward realizing this worthy goal.

It All Comes Down to Waiting Lists

Thu, 19 Aug 2004 14:49:25 -0400

At the Canadian Medical Association's annual meeting on Monday, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and federal Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh were jostling over the correct focus for medicare reform. The premiers want their Sept. 13 meeting with the Prime Minister to focus on pharmacare. The Prime Minister wants to prioritize waiting lists. The focus should be on waiting lists.

The Ethics of Treating Ailing Visitors

Mon, 16 Aug 2004 14:50:37 -0400

Two stories of visitors seeking health care in Canada caught the media's attention last week. Linda Wright and Martin McKneally discuss the ethical implications.

We Should Clone This U.K. Policy

Thu, 12 Aug 2004 14:53:40 -0400

The U.K. is positioned to lead the world in translating the potential benefits of stem-cell research into patients. Canada should follow its lead and permit therapeutic cloning under strict regulation.

'Compassionate Homicide' is a Crime Like No Other

Thu, 12 Aug 2004 14:55:57 -0400

Peter Singer discusses Canada's legal system and how it deals with cases of 'mercy' killings, in relation to the cases of David Carmichael and Robert Latimer.

Ethical Guidelines Needed Before "Nutrigenomic" Groceries Come to Market

Tue, 29 Jun 2004 15:17:03 -0400

New research designed to help consumers create customized diets based on their genetic make up will create ethical and legal challenges with serious implications for the scientific and medical communities, warns a new consultation paper by a panel of international experts.

Health-Care Spending an Ethical Issue

Mon, 26 Apr 2004 15:01:08 -0400

Sustainable financial stability comes not from spending more, but from spending wisely - deciding what we will provide and what we will not provide.

Will Prince Charles et al Diminish the Opportunities of Developing Countries in Nanotechnology?

Wed, 28 Jan 2004 15:05:42 -0400

Prince Charles and the ETC Group (formerly RAFI) have expressed opposition to nanotechnology in recent months, making this seem like a replay of the genetically-modified (GM) foods debate. That debate essentially ignored the voices of people in developing countries.

Priority Setting in Canada's Health Care System

Tue, 15 Apr 2003 15:32:52 -0400

JCB researchers release a study on Canada's health care priority-setting system, entitled, "Reasonable Rationing: International Experience of Priority Setting in Health Care".

Not All Cloning is Alike

Wed, 26 Feb 2003 15:28:04 -0400

Over the past few months, Parliamentarians have heard a lot of commentary on the policy issues associated with reproductive and "therapeutic" cloning. In many respects this dynamic debate is ideal, as it should inform the final political debates on Bill C-13, The Assisted Human Reproduction Act.

Leading Canadian Bio-ethicists Unite to urge Parliament: Regulate - Don't Ban Therapeutic Cloning

Tue, 25 Feb 2003 15:30:44 -0400

Several of Canada’s top bio-ethicists, along with a research funding organization, have come together to urge Canada’s Parliament to regulate "therapeutic" cloning, but not to prohibit it.

'Mind the gap': Science and Ethics in Nanotechnology (PDF)

Mon, 17 Feb 2003 15:22:02 -0400

Nanotechnology (NT) is a rapidly progressing field. Advances will have a tremendous impact on fields such as materials, electronics, and medicine. A thorough review of the current literature, governmental funding, and policy documents was undertaken.

Addressing Ethical Issues Urgently Needed for Emerging New Scientific Revolution

Mon, 10 Feb 2003 15:25:50 -0400

Nanotechnology applications are perhaps years away but developers should act now on lessons from confrontations over GMOs.

Setting Priorities Key to Sustainability of Medicare

Fri, 15 Nov 2002 15:39:19 -0400

Should an expensive new cancer drug, or a new surgical treatment for heart disease, be funded? How should these decisions be made? These are questions that researchers at The University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics (JCB) explore in a new study on Canada's health care system.

New Guidelines for MDs Draw Line Between Relief of Suffering and Euthanasia

Thu, 12 Sep 2002 15:43:22 -0400

Intensive care unit physicians need to be comfortable prescribing drugs in whatever dose is needed to relieve a dying patient's pain and suffering, even if this hastens the patient's death, according to proposed new guidelines released today by researchers at an international medical ethics think-tank.

Consensus Guidelines on Analgesia and Sedation in Dying Intensive Care Unit Patients

Mon, 12 Aug 2002 15:41:00 -0400

Intensivists must provide enough analgesia and sedation to ensure dying patients receive good palliative care. However, if it is perceived that too much is given, they risk prosecution for committing euthanasia. The goal of this study is to develop consensus guidelines on analgesia and sedation in dying intensive care unit patients that help distinguish palliative care from euthanasia.

Dying Patients Deserve Better

Thu, 1 Aug 2002 15:48:17 -0400

The conditions under which people die of incurable illness represent a neglected global issue, especially in developing countries, that demands far greater attention from the world’s medical leadership, according to a paper released today by an influential medical ethics think-tank.

Quality End-of-Life Care: A Global Perspective

Wed, 1 May 2002 15:46:02 -0400

Quality end of life care has emerged as an important concept in industrialized countries. Researchers argue that quality end of life care should be seen as a global public health and health systems problem.