April 5: Experts look at bioethics implications of health care advances

The man who co-wrote what is considered the “bible” of biomedical ethics will keynote a conference called “Beyond Our Beginnings: 50 Years of Bioethics” April 5 at Wake Forest University’s Graylyn International Conference Center.

James Childress, co-author of “Principles of Biomedical Ethics,” will join more than a dozen internationally renowned bioethics scholars to reflect on the ever-changing medical ethics field and highlight the challenges patients face in era of genetic engineering and other research advances.

“Research ethics is the reason bioethics became an important topic beginning in the 1970s,” said Ana Iltis, director of Wake Forest’s Center for Bioethics, Health and Society, which is organizing the conference. “How we do research continues to be important, with major changes to the rules that govern research in the United States.”

Four expert panels will address:

• Clinical ethics including end-of-life decisions and medical decisions for children.
• Health policy and justice issues, such as access to care and underserved populations.
• Research ethics such as informed consent.
• Disparities and health equity in terms of race/ethnicity and sex/gender, for example.

The conference runs from 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m. on April 5. The event is free and open to the public, although registration is required due to limited seating. Details can be found here.