Event: Human Tissue Ethics in Anatomy, Past and Present: From Bodies to Tissues to Data, Harvard University, April 4, 2019

Anatomy as a science and as an educational discipline in the medical curriculum is forever in transition. One of the greatest areas of change in recent decades has been the systematic evaluation of ethical questions in anatomy. At the center of these deliberations is the status of the dead human body, which is no longer only seen as a mere “object” or “material” of research or as an educational “tool.” Rather, it is described as a body that still has connections with the person who once inhabited it, thus becoming part of a social network of knowledge gain and requiring respectful treatment.

This change of perspective will be explored in the symposium, “Human Tissue Ethics in Anatomy, Past and Present: From Bodies to Tissues to Data,” which will take place in Gordon Hall, Harvard Medical School Campus on April 4, 2019 from 9:00am to 3:00pm. At this event, an international group of scholars will discuss the ethical aspects of existing questions, explore the relevance of non-profit and for-profit body donation, and examine newly emerging technologies in anatomy that may need innovative ethical approaches. The aim of this symposium is to present evidence for the insight that transparent and ethical anatomical body and tissue procurement is indeed at the core of medical ethics in research and education.

The event’s program and registration information can be found here.

2 Comments

  1. Caroline Bennett

    April 9, 2019 at 9:47 am

    Hi – will there be any write up from this event?

    • Jennifer Fraser

      June 5, 2019 at 2:32 pm

      Hi Caroline. My apologies for taking so long to reply! HAN’s Participant Observations team is currently working on producing a write up for this event. We’ll let you know as soon as it’s posted!

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