IUPUI

New Program Combines Medical and Philosophy Degrees for Bioethics Impact

INDIANAPOLIS - As the development, delivery, financing, and regulation of healthcare products and services continue as major economic and social endeavors, the field of bioethics - the ethics of the health and life sciences - is growing rapidly in importance, both nationally and internationally.

Two academic units at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) have joined forces to provide specialized training for those who will play leadership roles in addressing bioethical issues.

The Department of Philosophy in the IU School of Liberal Arts at IUPUI and the IU School of Medicine will run a combined-degrees program that offers a doctoral degree in medicine and a Master of Arts degree in philosophy, with a concentration in bioethics.

Bioethical issues, whether social, legal or philosophical, confront a diverse array of institutions, including state and federal agencies, healthcare organizations, and research and educational institutions. National and multinational corporations, along with human rights organizations, medical insurers, and religious agencies, also face bioethical issues.

"In combining the philosophical study of bioethics with the study of medicine, students will acquire the perspective, knowledge and expertise that will equip them to provide leadership concerning the bioethical issues faced by such institutions," said Jason T. Eberl, assistant professor and graduate co-director in the Department of Philosophy.

For additional information on the new degree program, please contact Jason T. Eberl at jeberl@iupui.edu; phone: (317) 278-9239; or visit the Master of Arts in philosophy Web site at http://www.iupui.edu/~philosop/ma.htm.