ETH-40042 - Module Specification
School of Law
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Programme/Approved Electives for 2024/25

Available as a Free Standing Elective

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

ETH-40036 Policy, Resource and Research Ethics in Palliative Care

Description for 2024/25

This module is designed for students on the MA Medical Ethics and Law, but is also available to students on the LLM Law and Society and other programmes at the discretion of the Programme Director.
Students who are not enrolled on the MA Medical Ethics and Law should have some prior knowledge of the key principles and methods of medical ethics and law. Those without such background may be allowed to take the module on completion of recommended background reading.
The module enables students to apply and extend their knowledge of ethical and legal concepts, principles and theories in the context of practical issues in healthcare affecting the relations between healthcare practitioners, patients and wider society, and to acquire knowledge and critical understanding of a range of contemporary ethical and legal controversies surrounding a range of such issues.
Topics covered typically include:
- biomedical research ethics and law;
- ethics of healthcare resource allocation;
- ethical and legal issues in genetics and reproductive technology;
- vaccine ethics and law.
The module also includes guidance for part-time Medical Ethics and Law students on progression to the dissertation stage.
The contact teaching is delivered in an intensive three-day block in order to be accessible to healthcare practitioners in full-time employment. Teaching is by interactive lectures, plenary and small group discussion. Students on the MA Medical Ethics and Law will meet with their supervisor during the teaching block, and all students have the opportunity to receive feedback on a 500-word assignment plan or similar piece of formative work.

To enable students to apply and extend their knowledge of ethical and legal concepts, principles and theories in the context of practical issues in healthcare affecting the relations between healthcare practitioners, patients and wider society.
To enable students to acquire knowledge and critical understanding of a range of contemporary controversies in medical ethics and law, particularly those that concern issues of justice in the relations between practitioners, patients and society.

Intended Learning Outcomes

describe, analyse, compare and evaluate key arguments in the academic literature on a topic relating to healthcare, justice and society;: 1
provide succinct explanation of the practices or policies under consideration and assess any empirical controversies relevant to the ethical or legal arguments;: 1
synthesise findings into a logical argument that explicitly addresses the assignment question, and defend the argument against foreseeable criticisms;: 1
communicate complex issues and arguments in a clear and structured manner;: 1
employ appropriate academic conventions regarding citation and referencing.: 1
identify relevant ethical and/or legal principles and demonstrate understanding of these by using them to evaluate and critique arguments and positions encountered in the literature;: 1

Study hours

Interactive lecture/seminar sessions:17
Individual discussions with tutor (face-to-face and/or via electronic communications): 1
Background reading: 100
Preparation of assignment plan: 20
Assignment research and writing: 162

School Rules

Barred combination ETH-40036 Policy, Resource and Research Ethics in Palliative Care
Students on the MA in Medical Ethics and Law will already have completed foundational modules in Medical Ethics and Law.
Students taking this module as an elective within another programme should have some knowledge of the key principles and methods of medical ethics and law. Those without such background may be allowed to take the module on completion of recommended background reading.

Description of Module Assessment