by Mackenzie Graham, Ph.D The recent case of a Brampton woman declared ‘brain dead’ by physicians —but whose family maintains that she is still alive— presents a number of challenging ethical issues, including how we define ‘death’, and the duty of care between patients and physicians. Taquisha McKitty was admitted to a Brampton hospital on [...]
Many fans of the Gilmore Girls were unhappy at how the show’s revival handled the storyline of the abrasive yet lovable Paris Geller. While I too agree that Paris deserves a happier ending, my dismay about her personal life was largely overshadowed by my dismay at how the show portrayed her career in commercial surrogacy [...]
by Cory E. Goldstein and Austin R. Horn Kyoko Wada joined the Rotman Institue this year as a postdoctoral fellow. She is a trained anesthesiologist with an MA in bioethics from Monash University, Australia and a PhD from Western University. She completed a bioethics research fellowship in the Departments of Psychiatry and Anesthesia & Perioperative [...]
by Nicole L. Fice, Cory E. Goldstein, and Austin R. Horn The media response to the recent Zika virus outbreak has been sensationalized and, as a result, governmental responses have been largely misplaced. Zika is a virus that has been around for decades, with relatively mild symptoms. However, a recent outbreak in Brazil that coincided [...]
This is the second in our our weekly series of interviews with the Rotman Institute's postdoctoral fellows. Last week's interview with Alida Liberman can be found here. Tommaso Bruni is a postdoctoral fellow at the Rotman Institute of Philosophy in London, Canada. He completed his PhD in 2013 at the University of Geneva in Switzerland. [...]
This post is the first in our weekly series of interviews with the Rotman Institute's postdoctoral fellows. These interviews are accessible introductions to the scholarship and to the service done by each postdoc. Rotman postdocs are a vital part of the life of the Institute and we hope that these interviews will give our readers a sense of the [...]
Rotman doctoral candidate, Andrew Peterson, is researching the ethical issues that stem from testing brain-injured patients for consciousness. On May 4th, his work was featured on an episode of the CBC radio program, Ideas from the Trenches. The series, hosted by Paul Kennedy, focuses on research being conducted by graduate students at universities across Canada. [...]
In two weeks, the Ontario Institute for Regenerative Medicine (OIRM), is hosting a free, public event on stem cells -- in partnership with Western University. One of the featured panelists is Rotman faculty member, Carolyn McLeod, who will be delivering a talk entitled, "The Ethics of Stem Cell Research". Stem Cells 101: The Promise and [...]
by Cory Goldstein On February 6, 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada declared in Carter v. Canada (Attorney General) that the prohibition of physician assisted death—section 14 and section 241(b) of the Criminal Code—is unconstitutional1. The Court stated that the prohibition was deemed to infringe on the rights of individuals under section 7 of the [...]
by Veromi Arsiradam Dr. Kirstin Borgerson is Associate Professor of Philosophy, Cross-Appointed with Gender and Women’s Studies, at Dalhousie University. Her main areas of research include philosophy of medicine, bioethics, feminist philosophy, and social epistemology. On January 29, 2016, Dr. Borgerson delivered a lecture titled, “Toward an Epistemic Justification for Research-Practice Integration in Medicine,” as [...]
