Core Courses

In the first year of study, all graduate students in the MA in Bioethics and Medical Humanities program are required to complete the interdisciplinary core of 12 credit hours, extending over two semesters. This core seminar, BETH 401: Foundations in Bioethics I covers four basic topic areas in bioethics and medical humanities: 1) fundmental concepts and approaches; reproduction, 2) sexual health, and family-making; 3) babies, children, and adolescents; and 4) adults and end-of-life. The course meets twice weekly in the evenings, plus separate weekly small group discussion and is taught in seminar format by Department of Bioethics faculty members and other experts who are on the specific topics.

Course only available fall semester.

In the first year of study, all graduate students in the MA in Bioethics and Medical Humanities program are required to complete the interdisciplinary core of 12 credit hours, extending over two semesters. This core seminar BETH 402: Foundations in Bioethics and Medical Humanities II completes the required seminar core and covers the basic bioethics and medical humanities topic areas: 1) research ethics and community engagement; 2) global and population health ethics; 3) neurodiversity, mental health, and disability; and 4) ethics in novel biotechnology (genetics, stem cells, AI, FES, etc). The course meets twice weekly and is taught in seminar format by Department of Bioethics faculty members and other experts on the specific topics.

Course only available spring semester.

The BETH 402C: Bioethics and Medical Humanities Capstone paper is an opportunity for the student to demonstrate mastery in an area of Bioethics and Medical Humanities. It is intended to show engagement with interdisciplinary literature in Bioethics and Medical Humanities and also an ability to construct and support an argument. The specific topic in Bioethics and Medical Humanities is chosen by the student in consultation with a faculty reader. This 1.5 credit hour core course will include semester-long learning and will normally be taken in conjunction with the enrollment of the core course BETH 402: Foundations in Bioethics and Medical Humanities II.

Course available fall, spring, and summer semesters for dual degree and part-time students. Full time students should plan to complete course in spring semester. 

All students must complete BETH 405: Clinical Ethics Rotation over two semesters for a total of three credit hours (except students in research ethics concentration who only complete one-1.5 credit). Students are exposed to clinical cases as they arise, hospital ethics committees and ethics consultation programs, institutional review boards (IRBs), and hospital policies covering “do not resuscitate” orders (DNR), advance directives, withdrawal of artificial feeding, organ procurement and transplantation, and medical futility. They will become familiar with the clinical, psychological, social, professional, and institutional contexts in which ethical problems arise. Schedules will need to be somewhat individualized to meet student needs. The current locations for this course are Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Louis Stokes Cleveland Veteran Affairs Medical Center, MetroHealth System, and University Hospitals of Cleveland. A preceptor and site coordinator will be available and responsible for each hospital.

Course available fall, spring, and summer semesters.

This three credit course BETH 410 Foundations of Medicine, Society, and Culture includes topics of comparative medical systems and concepts of health, medical history, illness narratives and narrative ethics, social determinants of health and health inequalities, analysis of representations of illness and medicine in literature and the arts, and medical rhetoric. Students who complete the course should develop a command of the basic problems, approaches, and literatures in the social and cultural contexts of health, sickness, and medicine. Students will be able to identify epistemology, theory, methodology and data from neighboring disciplines and understand affordances and costs in each.

Course only available fall semester.

Students enrolled in the BETH 418 MSC Seminar is an opportunity for students to attend a variety of talks and events throughout University Circle and the greater Cleveland community. This allows students to engage in learning environments outside of the classroom.

Course available fall and spring semesters.

This spring semester course, BETH 421 Research Ethics Practicum (80 hours,1.5 credits) is designed to complement the theoretical and conceptual training received in the course, Critical Issues in Research Ethics. By way of a series of campus-wide rotations, students learn about the practical, everyday side of research administration, compliance, and scientific review. Students will work with key staff in research ethics centers, and observe their day-to-day operations, as well as attend institutional review board (IRB) and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) meetings. They will become familiar with human subjects, animal, and tissue research regulations and policies as these are applied in an institutional/academic research context. Students will also spend time in a clinical trials unit and tour animal care facilities. The practicum has the following overall objectives: (1) students will be able to identify, analyze, and understand research ethics issues as they develop in the context of actual institutional research governance (2) students will gain an understanding of methods of ethical research design and implementation. 

Course only available spring semester.

This in-person seminar BETH 455/456 Research Ethics Journal Club will discuss current topics in biomedical research ethics via recently published articles in both the scholarly literature and the popular science press. For each session, students will choose articles, with instructor’s guidance, prepare discussion questions, and lead discussions.

Course only available fall and spring semesters.

BETH 503 Research Ethics and Regulation will introduce students to key ethical requirements and issues that arise in the design and implementation of scientific research. Historical developments leading to the establishment of national and international guidelines for ethical conduct in research with human subjects will be addressed. Specific international and national guidelines for ethically responsible research will be explored with attention to their merits and limitations in the conduct of research. Informed consent, a fundamental requirement for ethical research will be examined. The function and role of institutional review boards (IRBs) will be described with attention to challenges faced by investigators in adhering to regulatory requirements. Ethical issues associated with risk assessment and recruitment strategies will be examined. Ethical issues that arise in the implementation of biobanks and stem cell research will be discussed. Challenges associated with the development and production of pharmaceuticals will be assessed. The importance of scientific integrity in the conduct of research will be examined with special attention to conflicts of interest and scientific misconduct such as research fraud. The role of advocacy in promoting research will be addressed. Research ethics and human rights will be explored. The course will end with a discussion of emerging issues in research ethics. Case examples will be used to illustrate ethical complexities surrounding the topics discussed.

Course only available fall semester.

This course is designed as a graduate seminar. We explore the pros and cons of bioethicist participation in policy development, the various ways in which policy is developed at a number of levels, e.g., institutional and governmental levels, approaches to critically analyzing diverse policies and their bioethical implications, and strategies for the consideration of bioethical perspectives in the formulation of policy. We also identify, integrate, and synthesize materials from diverse disciplines relevant to the formulation of policy.

Course only available fall semester.

This course provides students with a hands-on experience in the development, implementation, and/or analysis of policy. Placements for the practicum will be individualized so that they are as congruent as possible with each individual student's interests. As examples, potential placements include the CWRU IRB, the IRB of a clinical affiliate, a local nonprofit organization, NIH, or the local office of a legislator. Prereq: BETH 502. Coreq: BETH 513.

Course only available spring semester.

This course is designed to explore the relationship between policy in diverse domains and their implications for health and bioethics. We examine the various factors that lead to policy development at various levels, e.g., institutional and governmental levels and the various biases and assumptions that serve as a foundation for the development and establishment of policy across diverse domains. The course will explore the various roles that can be played by bioethicists in the formulation of health-related policy.

Course only available spring semester.