ETH-40040 - 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-40038 Ethical Issues in Care of the Dying

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 extend their knowledge of ethical and legal concepts, principles and theories, especially those relating to the moral and legal status of persons and human bodies and the value and boundaries of human life, and to apply such principles to practical issues in healthcare and medical practice including intervention at the beginning and end of life and modification of the human body.
Topics covered typically include:
- abortion: ethical and legal issues;
- regulating reproduction;
- selective reproduction and saviour siblings;
- euthanasia: ethical issues;
- death, dying and the law;
- advance directives;
- postmortem organ transplant;
- treatment of intersex children;
- transgender, medicine and the law;
- assignment guidance and feedback.
The module often includes a talk by a visiting speaker, which provides an insight into academic work in healthcare ethics and law taking place in other institutions.
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.

To enable students to extend their knowledge of ethical and legal concepts, principles and theories, especially those relating to the moral and legal status of persons and human bodies and the value and boundaries of human life.
To enable students to apply such principles to practical issues in healthcare and medical practice including intervention at the beginning and end of life and modification of the human body.

Intended Learning Outcomes

describe, analyse, compare and evaluate key arguments in the academic literature on a topic relating to life, death and the human body;: 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-40038 Ethical Issues in Care of the Dying
Students on the MA in Medical Ethics and Law and the MA in Medical Ethics and Palliative Care will already have completed two 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