Debra Beight is a first-year Ph.D. student and a co-instructor for BETH 371, Advanced Bioethics. Her research interests encompass LGBTQ+ health with special attention on sexual and reproductive health for transgender and intersex persons, gender recognition policies for transgender persons in the EU, and health care access disparities for transgender immigrants and refugees in Sweden. She has recently presented her research on fertility preservation for intersex infants at UTMB’s Reproductive Ethics conference. In April 2023, she presented for the third time at the EPATH Transgender Health conference. She is currently working on a manuscript focusing on futurity and intersex infants and children. Debra received a BA from The Ohio State University, double majoring in Communication Analysis and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, a Master of Medical Science with a major in Public Health from Lund University in Sweden, and an MA in Bioethics from The Ohio State University.
Link to personal website: https://www.debrabeight.com/
Courses Taught
Publications
Exploring the Needs, Expectations, and Realities of Mental Healthcare for Transgender Adults: A Grounded Theory Study on Experiences in Sweden (2018): Transgender Health: https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/trgh.2017.0033
Eric Blackstone, MA
Eric Blackstone is a third-year PhD student interested in ethical issues in oncology and neurology. He also works as a Research Associate in the School of Nursing, where he manages a clinical trial testing an intervention for family caregivers of cancer patients receiving radiation treatment. Eric received his undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience from the Ohio State University in 2012. He completed the M.A. in Bioethics at CWRU in 2015. His dissertation project uses qualitative methods to explore the role of family caregivers in cancer clinical trial decision making.
Research Interests
- Cancer Ethics
- Neuroethics
- Clinical Trials
- End-of-Life Decision Making
Publications
Blackstone EC, Daly BJ. The Need for Specialized Oncology Training for Clinical Ethicists. HEC Forum 2022. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10730-022-09477-9
Blackstone EC, Ford PJ, Sankary LR, Clarity on Palliative Neurosurgery: A Neuroethics Perspective, World Neurosurgery 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wneu.2021.08.148
Blackstone E, Daly B, Griggins C. Making Medical Decisions for Incapacitated Patients without Proxies: Part II. HEC Forum 2020; 32:47-62. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10730-019-09388-2
Blackstone E, Youngner SJ. When slippery slope arguments miss the mark: a lesson from one against physician-assisted death. Journal of Medical Ethics 2018; 44:657-660. https://doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2018-104931