MSc in Healthcare Ethics and Law
The MSc in Health Care Ethics and Law aims to help heath care professionals to develop their understanding of the nature of ethics and law in health care and to apply the principles to their practices. The course is administered and run by the Centre for Ethics in Medicine and is offered on a part-time basis only, over two years of study.
Through undertaking this programme, students will develop a deep understanding of ethical and legal issues in health care and the key theoretical approaches taken to resolve these. Students will become familiar with identifying and resolving current ethical problems in health care, and will gain a comprehensive understanding of research methods in health care ethics and law. The programme also offers students the opportunity to reflect on the ethical and legal issues they have encountered in their own practice in the healthcare professions.
There are exit points for a Postgraduate Certificate (PgCert), Postgraduate Diploma (PgDip) and MSc in Health Care Ethics and Law. The next MSc intake will be in October 2010.
This course is taught by a multi-disciplinary team, including academics working health care ethics and law and health professionals with ethico-legal expertise. Teaching is seminar-style, with plenty of opportunity for student interaction.
This course is designed in such a way so as to allow maximum flexibility for students to fit their learning around work schedules. There are 2 teaching/study days per 15-credit Unit (or equivalent), with supported online learning providing a wealth of additional content.
Course Structure
There are three sequential components to this course. Students are able to enrol on either the Certificate or MSc and can exit at Certificate, Diploma or MSc level:·
- Certificate in Health Care Ethics and Law (60 credits)·
- Diploma in Health Care Ethics and Law (Certificate + 60 credits)·
- MSc in Health Care Ethics and Law (Diploma + 60 credits)
The course runs part-time over two years. In Year 1, students undertake the Certificate plus 2 Diploma modules. In Year 2 students complete the Diploma before undertaking their Dissertation. A breakdown of the structure is as follows:
Certificate Units:·
Introduction to ethical and legal issues in health care (30 credits)·
Patient-centred issues in health care ethics and law (15 credits)·
Professional issues in health care ethics and law (15 credits)
Diploma Units:·
Plus TWO from the following:
-
Children, young people and health care: ethical and legal issues (15 credits)
-
Ethical issues in the Allied Health Professions (15 credits)
Nb: Options offered are dependant on staff resources
Dissertation Unit:·
Dissertation in Health Care Ethics and Law (60 credits)
Teaching is scheduled in either 6 or 12-week blocks for 15 and 30-credit Units respectively. On-campus teaching is held at the Centre for Ethics in Medicine at start of each block, supported by further online materials.
Assessment
The Units are primarily assessed via written essays. A formative assessment is included in the first Certificate Unit to allow students to re-immerse themselves into study and to ‘practice’ writing in what may be a new style or method. Training in research and writing methods is also provided.
The length of the assessment varies with the credits assigned to each Unit. Typically, a 15-credit Unit will be assessed via a 3,000-word essay; whilst a 5,000-word essay will be submitted for 30-credit Unit. The Dissertation has a limit of 20,000 words.
Entry Requirements
The course is available to health care professionals, whatever their particular discipline. Generally, candidates will need to have an approved professional qualification with a minimum of three years’ experience since qualification. However those with other relevant experience are also invited to apply.
Proficiency in English (a score of at least 6.5 for the IELTS) and experience with word processing, use of the internet and email are essential. Please note that this part-time programme does not meet UK government requirements for student visas. Internationals holding non-student visas may be eligible for entry.
Following their initial application, applicants will also be required to submit a short sample of written work, in order that we may select candidates who will be able to fulfil the course requirements (with particular reference to skills in writing and use of information technology). This will not require research and will draw on the applicant’s clinical or other relevant experience.
Fees
The course fees vary slightly each year. These are in the region of £2,700 per annum for home students. Information for fees for the 20010/11.
The fee for the Certificate component of the course only in 20010/11 is £1,800.
Funding
Unfortunately, scholarships or other sources of funding are not generally available for masters-level courses. We regret that there are no specific funding sources for this programme. For general information on fuding please consult the Student Funding Office website.
We recommend that interested applicants approach their employers or professional organisations where appropriate, to inquire as to funding opportunities. We are very happy to provide specific information on the course to employers or to answer employer-specific questions.
Applications
The University Prospectus entry for this course can be found at: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/prospectus/postgraduate/2010/prog_details/MDYF/388.
You can apply online for this course at:
http://www.bris.ac.uk/prospectus/postgraduate/2010/applications/online-applications.html
This URL also provides a link to the paper-based application forms. Applicants submitting paper-based applications should complete the application form and arrange for two referees to be sent. All application materials should be sent to: Postgraduate Admissions
Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry
University of Bristol
69 St Michaels Hill
Bristol
BS2 8DZ
Further Questions? Don’t hesitate to contact us by email or telephone Anne Lavender on 0117 331 0720.
Alternatively, answers to general administrative questions may be available at the University’s postgraduate FAQ website.
The Units in More Detail
Please note that Dr Ainsley Newson will be on maternity leave until March 2011. Dr Stuart Oultram will be directing the MSc in her absence.
Introduction to ethical and legal issues in health care (30 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Ainsley Newson
This unit will introduce students to key theories in health care ethics and law and enable students to critically evaluate and apply these. The unit will familiarise students with the major contemporary perspectives in applied ethics, introduce students to legal analysis as it applies to health care, relate these perspectives to key ethical and legal issues and introduce research methods in health care ethics and law. Topics to be covered include: (i) Study skills for successful masters-level scholarship; (ii) Introduction to research methods in health care ethics and law; (iii) principles of health care ethics, (iv) ethical theories, (v) introduction to law and legal reasoning, (vi) introduction to clinical negligence (vii) overview of key topics in health care law; and (viii) the relation between law and morality and interplay of ethical and legal reasoning in health care ethics and law.
Patient-centred issues in health care ethics and law (15 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Ainsley Newson
This Unit aims to provide students with a systematic understanding and critical awareness of some of the key issues surrounding the relationship between patients and health care professionals. The Unit will focus on the key ethical and legal obligations, duties and liberties in the professional-patient relationship, including autonomy, conscience and confidentiality. Students will learn to distinguish between, critically appraise and apply some of the theories relating to care of both competent and incompetent patients, and will gain greater insight into the legal and professional obligations in this context.
Professional issues in health care ethics and law (15 credits)
Unit Director: Professor Ruud ter Meulen
This Unit aims to provide students with a systematic understanding and critical awareness of further key issues surrounding the role of the health care professional, with regard both for the individual patient and society at large. The Unit will focus students’ attention on theoretical justifications for, and ethical and legal obligations arising in relation to, work in the health care professions including professionals’ self-care and care of others. Students will learn to distinguish between, critically appraise and apply some of the theories relating to professionalism, conscience and justice and will gain greater insight into and ability to critically reflect on the legal and professional obligations in this context.
Decision-making at the beginning and end of life (30 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Richard Huxtable
This Unit aims to provide students with a systematic understanding and critical awareness of some of the key issues and dilemmas arising at the beginning and end of life. The Unit will focus on the core ethical and legal concepts and issues arising across these fields, notably the concepts of personhood, self-determination and the value of life. Students will learn to distinguish between, critically appraise and apply some of the theories relating to topical issues in these fields and will gain greater insight into the legal and professional obligations in this context.
Current topics in clinical ethics (15 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Ainsley Newson
This Unit – the first of its kind in the UK - will develop students’ understanding of, and critical reflection on, ‘clinical ethics’ - the way in which ethical and legal issues are resolved in everyday health care practice. The Unit will also offer a student-centred approach to some content, allowing topical and emerging issues to be identified and discussed. Core subject matter will include (i) A brief history of clinical ethics; (ii) Theoretical reasoning by ethics committees; (iii) Current challenges in the development of clinical ethics support in the UK. Optional subject matter will be taught via student-led seminars, with guided reading provided by staff at the Centre for Ethics in Medicine. Topics will be chosen by mutual agreement between Centre staff and students, but may encompass surgical ethics, stem cell therapy, genetics and mental health. The seminars will proceed by way of a mock clinical ethics committee. Students will have the opportunity to demonstrate application of knowledge through an essay drawing together theoretical and reflective scholarship.
Optional Unit: Children, young people and health care: ethical and legal issues (15 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Richard Huxtable
This unit aims to provide students with a systematic understanding and critical awareness of some of the key ethical, legal and professional issues surrounding children and young people as patients. Students will be able to understand concepts such as autonomy and beneficence (“best interests”) and how these actually apply and ought to apply to children and young people, both in relation to treatment and research. Students will also assess ways of dealing with conflicts between those parties interested in the welfare of the child or young person and will gain greater insight into legal and professional obligations in this context and the difficulties in applying them in practice.
Optional Unit: Research Ethics (15 Credits)
Unit Director: Dr Ainsley Newson
This Unit aims to provide students with a systematic understanding and critical awareness of some of the key issues and dilemmas arising in the context of medical research as opposed to clinical practice. It will examine why we need research ethics and the major safeguards to protect the rights and interests of participants in research. The Unit will include the following topics: (i) An overview of major themes and concepts in research ethics, including the possibility of a ‘duty to participate’ in research, (ii) Consent and capacity as they apply to research; (iii) Risk in research, (iv) Research with vulnerable groups, (v) International research ethics, and (vi) The process of ethics review by independent committees..
Optional Unit: Ethical issues in the Allied Health Professions (15 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Zuzana Deans
It appears that doctors and allied health professionals can and do differ in their opinions, particularly in sensitive decisions such as the limitation of life-sustaining treatment. This unit considers ethical and legal issues that arise in the delivery of health care within a multi-disciplinary environment. The unit will divide into two parts: (i.) the principles of ethical practice in allied health, such as the concept of “care”, professional-patient advocacy and codes of conduct; and (ii.) professional issues in allied health, including topics such as conscientious objection and conflicts with other health care professionals, drawing on case studies.
Dissertation in Health Care Ethics and Law (60 credits)
Unit Director: Dr Ainsley Newson
This Unit will enable students to demonstrate their abilities to independently carry out a sustained piece of academic work that makes a genuine and original contribution to knowledge in health care ethics and law. Under appropriate supervision students will develop and finalise a research question and will undertake the necessary research, critical engagement with literature and scholarship to answer it; utilising methodologies of analysis in health care ethics and law. They will demonstrate their comprehensive understanding and application of the chosen topic, the relevant methodology and critical evaluation of the argument(s) being advanced. The dissertation is undertaken during terms two and three of the second year of study, with preparation of a final (maximum) 20,000 word dissertation.