PHIL 3380 Advance Topic: Philosophy & Medicine

This course will use the disciplinary resources of philosophy, history, anthropology, bioethics, and biomedicine to examine how medical knowledge and expertise are built and used. Some topics of inquiry might include, but are not limited to, the enlightenment era shifting of the location for medical practice and research from the patient’s home to institutionalized settings, such as hospitals or learning clinics; the degree to which sex, gender, or race has influenced medical and scientific experimentation; the use of medical research to inform public policy discussions and measures; and how to understand and promote patient autonomy, and when it might be appropriate for the patient to defer to medical authority. This course is writing intensive. Prerequisite(s): PHIL 1100 or PHIL 1120 or PHIL 1500 or PHIL 2200 or PHIL 2320
Credits: 3.0