Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2025 - HSCI 319W D200

Applied Health Ethics (3)

Class Number: 7255

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 6 – Apr 9, 2025: Thu, 2:30–4:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Prerequisites:

    75 units including nine HSCI units with a minimum grade of C-, one of which must be a 200-division course.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Practical ethical and legal issues in health sciences, emphasizing population and public health. Case studies approach highlighting current ethical dilemmas and decision-making in the context of global to local legal frameworks. Writing.

COURSE DETAILS:

In this course, we will explore ethical issues in the health sciences, emphasizing population-level health. Questions we will address include:

  • How do we approach resource allocation and the provision of information in the realm of reproductive health?
  • Can understanding the recent historical origins of contemporary psychiatry help us analyze, assess, and make decisions or design policies that take mental health into account in a nuanced way?
  • What does professional clinical ethics look like in BC today?
  • When news outlets and social media present controversial and incendiary topics, how can an analytical approach allow us to form views and make decisions that respect people’s dignity?
  • How do the places and communities we live in contribute to our wellbeing from a public health perspective?

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

  • Students will receive ongoing guidance with their academic reading comprehension, specifically with texts relevant to the application of ethical theory to complex problems regarding population-level health.
  • Students will develop academic writing skills through practice, revision, and reflection, and have ongoing opportunities to use these skills to express their interpretations of and response to the topics we cover.
  • Students will develop analytical skills allowing them to identify the precise meaning of texts they read, as well as express their own views with clarity and precision.
  • Students will have the opportunity to identify and develop their intuitions and views regarding controversial and challenging topics, as well as current events relevant to the topics we cover.
  • Students will be introduced to a range of disciplines that contribute to the study of applied health ethics.

Grading

  • TCPS2 certificate 4%
  • Reading comprehension assignments ( x3 at 12% each)) 36%
  • Essay draft 15%
  • Essay final 20%
  • Participation - questions x 10 10%
  • Participation - reflections x 10 10%
  • Participation - self-reflection 5%

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

Readings will be provided through Canvas

REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity website http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the university community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the university. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the university. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.