Syllabus
Bioethics
Week 1
Course Overview and Welcome
Navigate a course in D2L
Locate important course information i.e. syllabus
View the instructor profile
Communicate with instructor and peers
Construct a Class Directory entry
Communicate effectively in an online class discussion ice-breaker
Participate in community building
Define ethics and bioethics
Distinguish ethical questions from scientific and legal questions and from questions of personal preference, custom, or habit
Week 2
Bioethics Concepts and Skills
Employ ethical inquiry
Apply ethical considerations to ethical inquiry
Recognize well reasoned and strong justification for one's position
Week 3
Biomedical Ethics: Assisted Reproductive Technology
Describe how conception works
Identify major issues related to fertility and causes of infertility
Discuss major assisted reproductive technologies, including IVF, ZIFT, GIFT, ISCI, and PGD
Identify major ethical concerns and controversies relating to assisted reproductive technologies
Week 4
Biomedical Ethics: Third Party Assisted Reproductive Technology
Identify fertilization and the early stages of development.
Define terms related to early stages of development
Discuss third party assisted reproductive technologies, including sperm donation, egg donation, surrogacy and embryo adoption
Identify major ethical concerns and controversies relating to third party assisted reproductive technologies
Debate the role of regulation in third party assisted reproductive technology
Week 5
Biomedical Ethics: Allocating Scarce Resources
Identify major organ systems and tissues that can be transplanted and various diseases that impact these systems
Identify basic scientific and medical concepts that enable physicians to transplant an organ or tissue from one person into another
Identify how organs and tissues are allocated to patients on transplant waiting lists
Identify the major reasons for a national shortage of organs and a growing list of patients awaiting transplants and debate a solution
Identify major ethical concerns and controversies relating to organ and tissue transplantation and the organ and tissue donor shortage
Week 6
Biomedical Ethics: End of Life
Define sanctity of life and death
Explain the term “good death” and the principles involved in providing “good death to a terminally ill patient” by defining the different types of euthanasia
Explain the terms: “best interests”, “advance directives”, “withdrawal or withholding of life support system”, “do not resuscitate (DNR) orders”, "PVS","coma"
Review cases involving end-of-life issues that illustrate the complexities of the issue - and the emotions they can create
Develop awareness of other moral dilemmas involved in assisted deaths
Discuss different arguments for and against euthanasia, and the alternatives
Week 7
Genethics: Introduction to Biotechnology and HGP
Trace genetic discoveries and development molecular biology from the 1940s to the present
Describe molecular laboratory techniques used in biotechnology
Complete a virtual lab exercises using tools of biotechnology
Describe the Human Genome Project
Describe the common methods and applications of biotechnology
Use the OMIM
Week 8
Genethics: Weighing Benefits and Harms: Ethical Issues in Genetic Screening
Outline and review the fundamental laws of genetics; Laws of dominant/recessive alleles, segregation, and assortment
Explain how bioinformatics tools are useful in analyzing biological sequence and structure information
Apply sequence analysis and protein visualization tools to explore genetic disorders
Review a case involving genetic screening that illustrate the complexities of the issue - and the emotions they can create
Identify and critically evaluate the ethical implications of genetic testing for individuals and their families, and society at large
Explore that decision making about genetic tests varies according to factors such as age at disease onset, the predictive value of the tests, and whether anything effective can be done for the condition
Week 9
Genethics: Gene-technology for life improvement and to cure disease
Define processes and tools for genetic engineering in humans, with reference to somatic cell and germ cell therapy
Review potential gene therapy applications and categorize them as "enhancements" or "treatments"
Review cases involving gene therapy that illustrate the complexities of the issue - and the emotions they can create
Compare and contrast ethical issues involved in somatic and germ line therapy and discuss the benefits and disadvantages of somatic and germline therapy
Identify and critically evaluate the ethical implications of genetic therapy for individuals and their families, and society at large
Week 10
Genethics: From the Lab to the Dinner Table
Compare the processes of selective breeding and transgenic manipulation of plants
Discuss the arguments for and against genetic modification of foods
Describe the possible future impact of genetically modified foods
Identify foods that you consume or encounter that do or likely contain genetically modified organisms and those that do not
Discuss critically some of the issues that surround the GMO debate to include: globalization, safety, labeling, and impact on family farms
Week 11
Research Ethics: Modifying the Natural World: Human Responsibilities toward Animals
Review the 3R of animal research (replacement, reduction and refinement) and connect them to regulations surrounding research
Examine the animals used and why animals are used
Review cases involving animal research that illustrate the complexities of the issue - and the emotions they can create
Relate way in which animal research has benefited people and animals
Discuss and critically evaluate reasons for against animal research
Week 12
Research Ethics: The Power and Peril of Human Experimentation
Identify benefits to human health as a result of using people in research studies
Identify significant abuses of research participants
Recognize that medical research is primarily intended to advance knowledge and bring benefits to people in the future
Identify key ethical considerations of respect for persons and harms and benefits as they relate to research ethics
Review cases involving human research that illustrate the complexities of the issue - and the emotions they can create
Analyze a case and use your understanding of key ethical concepts to evaluate where the study is unethical
Week 13
Research Ethics – Neuroethics: Advances in Neuroscience
Identify the basic parts of the brain and explain their main functions
Describe methods of neuroimaging
Explain and understand in general terms the concept of Neuroethics
Understand that ethical questions may arise with advances in neurotechnology
Look at brain fingerprinting scans and differentiate between normal and abnormal scans
Week 14
Research Ethics: Stem Cells
Explain what stem cells are, where they are located, how they develop, and how they function
Explain the different methods of obtaining stem cells, the potential use of the types obtained, and how the source relates to the controversy over stem cell research
Review cases involving stem cell that illustrate the complexities of the issue - and the emotions they can create
Describe the range of positions taken by individuals/organization/countries with respect to stem cells
Evaluate policy options identified by the scientific community and the U.S. government, and become familiar with the ethical debate which has shaped this policy
Integrate and apply understandings about stem cells, disease, and policy issues to develop an informed, personal position
Week 15
Bioethics: Bringing it All Together: Past, Present and Future
Discuss present events as well as what the future might hold for bioethics
Review the information that you've learned in the course
Share some final thoughts with your classmates
Reflect on your experience in the course
Share what your future may hold and what advice you'd offer for future students of this course
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