The Ethics Of Ex Utero Research On Spare \u27ivf\u27 Human Embryos

As the debate on the ethics of ex utero research on spare in vitro (\u27IVF\u27) human embryos has evolved, the focus has been primarily on the moral status of the developing human and the potential societal consequences of continued embryological research. For this reason, at the outset, I critically review the relevant literature on personhood and humanhood, and also canvass the many consequentialist arguments both for and against embryological research. In the first chapter, I conclude that the controversy surrounding embryological research cannot be resolved a priori on the basis of evaluative and stipulative definitions. In the second chapter, I conclude that although the potential harms of embryological research are significant, they do not outweigh the potential benefits.;Next, existing proposals for limited embryological research are critically examined, with particular attention given to those arguments that attribute moral relevance to a specific developmental feature. In turn, the problems with the various proposals for limiting embryological research to early cleavage, the beginning of implantation, the completion of implantation, the formation of the primitive streak, etc., are systematically exposed.;Then, in the final chapters, the assumption that human embryos are a homogeneous class is explicitly rejected. A distinction is drawn between: (1) \u27IVF\u27 human embryos that, by virtue of their specific constitution and given available medical technology have the potential for continued human growth and development (viable \u27IVF\u27 human embryos); and (2) \u27IVF\u27 human embryos that do not have this potential and whose death is imminent and unavoidable (non-viable \u27IVF\u27 human embryos). On this basis, a distinction between morally acceptable and unacceptable embryological research is then argued for according to which non-viable \u27IVF\u27 human embryos morally may be targeted for research provided that: (1) the research is aimed at legitimate scientific, medical, or diagnostic objective(s); (2) the scientific validity of the research is assured; (3) the anticipated benefits are proportionate to the anticipated harms; and (4) the gamete donors (and, as necessary, the prospective social parents) voluntarily consent to the specific aims of the proposed research. Finally, the limitations as well as the merits of the proposed alternative approach to embryological research are briefly considered

Ethics Education for Canadian Medical Students

This study was designed to determine the nature extent and quality of medical ethics education for students in Canadian medical schools In 1989 a questionnaire that used primarily openended questions was sent to all 16 Canadian medical schools they all responded Significant findings include the following 15 of the 16 schools provided some ethics education with wideranging objectives the time allotted for such instruction ranged from ten and a half hours to 45 hours per degree not per year with no discernible pattern in the distribution of hours across the years most teaching was casebased and issueoriented most instructors were physicians and almost all the schools conducted assessments of students using a passfail standar

Confusion Worse Confounded: A Comment on \u27Withdrawl of Clinical Trials Policy by Canadian Research Institute is a \u27Lost Opportunity for Increased Transparency\u27

According to a recent BMJ article on CIHR\u27s decision to disappear its policy on clinical trial registration, Ian Graham, CIHR\u27s vice president Knowledge Translation and Public Outreach, stated the CIHR policy was removed \u27as the overlap [with Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2)] will cause confusion and inconsistent application of the requirements.\u27 Ironically, this explanation is itself confusing and inconsistent with previous decisions made by CIHR. There are at least three areas in which CIHR policy/guidelines overlapped with TCPS 2 (registration and results disclosure of trials, research involving Aboriginal People, and research involving human pluripotent stem cells), and in each case CIHR took a different approach

Why the Government of Canada Won\u27t Regulate Assisted Human Reproduction: A Modern Mystery

The Canadian Assisted Human Reproduction Act (AHR Act), passed in 2004, prohibits both paying consideration to a surrogate mother and purchasing sperm and ova from a donor (sections 6-7). Both prohibitions are subject to section 12, which was intended to permit reimbursement of expenditures incurred by surrogate mothers and gamete donors and reimbursement for loss of work-related income for surrogate mothers. Remarkably, more than ten years after the AHR Act received Royal Assent, and in spite of repeated calls for greater legal clarity, Health Canada has not drafted regulations pursuant to section 12 of the AHR Act, which is not yet in force. In this paper, we speculate as to possible reasons why the Conservative government (2006-2015) did not draft regulations, and we explain in turn why each of the possible reasons for inaction is flawed. In light of our rejection of all of the reasons we could imagine, we argue that Health Canada should both explain and justify its failure to draft the regulations that would set the stage for Parliament to bring section 12 into force. It must do so if the federal government is to meet the AHR Act‘s goal of protecting children, women, and men engaged in, or affected by, surrogacy and third-party egg production

Ill-Informed Consent? A Content Analysis of Physical Risk Disclosure in School-Based HPV Vaccine Programs

This study examines the accuracy completeness and consistency of human papilloma virus HPV vaccine related physical risks disclosed in documents available to parents legal guardians and girls in Canadian jurisdictions with schoolbased HPV vaccine program

The Tale of Assisted Human Reproduction Canada: A Tragedy in Five Acts

In the spring of 2012, Assisted Human Reproduction Canada (AHRC)—the federal agency tasked with the oversight of assisted human reproduction in Canada—was abolished through the passage of the omnibus budget bill. This ignominious end was in part a response to the Supreme Court of Canada’s Reference re Assisted Human Reproduction Act. However, as we recount in this article, it was also a result of a series of squandered opportunities to regulate assisted human reproduction in the interests of those who use or are born of assisted human reproductive technologies. This article details the genesis, life, and death of the AHRC. We conclude that many millions of public dollars and many hours of experts’ time have been spent, all for naught

The Tale of Assisted Human Reproduction Canada: A Tragedy in Five Acts

In the spring of 2012, Assisted Human Reproduction Canada (AHRC) — the federal agency tasked with the oversight of assisted human reproduction in Canada — was abolished through the passage of the omnibus budget bill. This ignominious end was in part a response to the Supreme Court of Canada’s Reference re Assisted Human Reproduction Act. However, as we recount in this article, it was also a result of a series of squandered opportunities to regulate assisted human reproduction in the interests of those who use or are born of assisted human reproductive technologies. This article details the genesis, life, and death of the AHRC. We conclude that many millions of public dollars and many hours of experts’ time have been spent, all for naught

Policy Design for Human Embryo Research in Canada

In Canada research involving human embryos is circumscribed by law and research guidelines This chapter describes the development of these policy instruments over the past 20 years and analyses this history using a typology of modes of public consultation developed by Eric Montpetit 2003 Over time the degree to which the views of Canadian residents and citizens on human embryo research have been solicited as part of the policymaking process has diminished significantly We expect this trend to continue given the presence of powerful interest groups and policy communities speaking for Canadian

Ethics Education for Canadian Medical Students

This study was designed to determine the nature, extent and quality of medical ethics education for students in Canadian medical schools. In 1989, a questionnaire that used primarily open-ended questions was sent to all 16 Canadian medical schools; they all responded. Significant findings include the following: 15 of the 16 schools provided some ethics education (with wide-ranging objectives); the time allotted for such instruction ranged from ten and a half hours to 45 hours (per degree, not per year), with no discernible pattern in the distribution of hours across the years; most teaching was case-based and issue-oriented; most instructors were physicians; and almost all the schools conducted assessments of students using a pass-fail standard