Call for abstracts

25th EUROPEAN CONFERENCE
ON PHILOSOPHY OF MEDICINE AND HEALTH CARE

Priorities in Medicine and Health Care

17 - 20 August, 2011
Zurich, Switzerland

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

This conference will be organised by the European Society for Philosophy of Medicine and Healthcare (ESPMH) and the Institute of Biomedical Ethics, University of Zurich, Switzerland. Abstracts addressing the following topics will be favoured, although work on other topics can also be submitted:

Justice and priority setting in medicine and health care:

  • Theoretical foundations (fair process, capabilities approach etc.)
  • Implicit vs. explicit rationing
  • Institutions and their structure, mandate, legitimation (e.g. NICE)
  • Outcome measures (QALYs, DALYs etc)
  • Medical need and cost-effectiveness

Conceptual issues and distinctions:

  • Health, illness and disease
  • Prevention and therapy vs. enhancement
  • Cost-effectiveness and quality in health care
  • Goals of medicine and health care

Conflicts of interest in medicine and health care:

  • Patient care and medical research
  • Health care professionalism and competitiveness
  • Implications of reimbursement models (DRGs, managed care etc.)

Patients' rights and access to health care:

  • Access to health care as a human right
  • Justice and the right to health care
  • Current controversies about health insurance coverage

The programme of the conference includes plenary sessions as well as parallel sessions. Anyone wishing to present a paper at the conference should submit an abstract (500 words maximum) before March 1, 2011. The Conference Programme Committee will select abstracts for oral presentation. Please send abstracts by e-mail to:

Professor Bert Gordijn
Secretary of the ESPMH
Institute of Ethics
Henry Grattan Building
Dublin City University
Dublin 9, Ireland
E-mail: bert.gordijn@dcu.ie