Contemporary Issues In Bioethics

Offers a lucid overview of the central issues in bioethics today, including reproductive technologies, right-to-die, AIDS, eugenics, and human genetics. Presenting differing viewpoints from world-renowned scholars, this thought-provoking book provides an excellent framework for analyzing key issues.

This anthology represents all major points of view on the central topics in bioethics. It contains current essays and actual medical and legal cases written by outstanding scholars from around the globe. The book provides readers with diverse views from many standpoints, including medical researchers and practitioners, legal experts, and philosophers.

"The ethical issues we face in healthcare, justice, and human rights extend beyond national boundaries-they are global and cross-cultural in scope. The second edition of this interdisciplinary and international collection features new essays on gender identity, vaccines, stem cells, bioterror, and other pressing contemporary concerns"--

This book discusses the common principles of morality and ethics derived from divinely endowed intuitive reason through the creation of al-fitr' a (nature) and human intellect (al-‘aql). Biomedical topics are presented and ethical issues related to topics such as genetic testing, assisted reproduction and organ transplantation are discussed. Whereas these natural sources are God’s special gifts to human beings, God’s revelation as given to the prophets is the supernatural source of divine guidance through which human communities have been guided at all times through history. The second part of the book concentrates on the objectives of Islamic religious practice – the maqa' sid – which include: Preservation of Faith, Preservation of Life, Preservation of Mind (intellect and reason), Preservation of Progeny (al-nasl) and Preservation of Property. Lastly, the third part of the book discusses selected topical issues, including abortion, assisted reproduction devices, genetics, organ transplantation, brain death and end-of-life aspects. For each topic, the current medical evidence is followed by a detailed discussion of the ethical issues involved.

The main strength of this book is the international exchange of ideas that will not only highlight many of these crucial bioethical issues but will strengthen the discipline of bioethics both nationally and globally. A critical exchange of ideas allows everyone to learn and benefit from the insights gained through others experiences. Analyzing and understanding real medical-ethical issues and cases and how they are resolved is the basis of education in bioethics for those who will have to make these decisions in the future. The more we examine, analyze, and debate these bioethical issues and cases, the more knowledge will be gained and hopefully, we will all gain more practical wisdom.

This anthology represents all of the most important points of view on the most pressing topics in bioethics. Containing current essays and actual medical and legal cases written by outstanding scholars from around the globe, this book provides readers with diverse range of standpoints, including those of medical researchers and practitioners, legal exerts, and philosophers.

"Contemporary Issues in Bioethics: A Catholic Perspective applies the best of the Roman Catholic theological and ethical tradition to some of the most controversial and complex bioethical topics that confront contemporary society. Walter and Shannon offer a fresh analysis of the Catholic tradition, and show how a distinctively Catholic perspective can inform public discussion of these issues. In an age where religion is often excluded from ethical discussions on bioethical issues, this book shows that the Catholic tradition has something very important to offer." --Book Jacket.

Contemporary bioethicists and scholars of ancient philosophy explore the import of classical ethics on such pressing bioethical concerns.