Saving lives or respecting rights? An introduction to health ethics

Should you be able to choose the gender of your baby? Should risky behaviours reduce your fair share of health care resources? Should researchers in developed countries conduct research with populations in developing countries? What are the ethical obligations of biomedical scientists? Is euthanasia morally permissible? These are some of the fascinating ethical questions this course will equip you to answer. You will explore ethical issues ranging from the individual to the global level, and learn to analyse and resolve these issues using major ethical theories and principles. In this way, you will come to appreciate that a tension sometimes exists between saving lives and respecting rights.