Bioethics

Objectives

The subject Bioethics is part of the Ethics subject, included in the basic training module, and aims to introduce the essential contents of both fundamental bioethics and clinical bioethics. Bioethics is a discipline that aims to help students become good health professionals, especially from the perspective of ethical attitudes and values. The first part of the subject aims to introduce students to the basic knowledge of bioethics and other disciplines that are related to it. The second part addresses issues that raise ethical and legal problems in the field of life sciences and health sciences.

The objectives of the Bioethics subject are:

• Understand the meaning and scope of ethical reflection within the profession.
• Know and integrate the values and attitudes that shape the profession and the provisions of its code of ethics.
• Identify and analyze ethical issues that arise in the profession and learn to give well-founded answers.

Learning outcomes

• LO1. Know the legal and ethical limits of dietetic practice and the safe handling of information.
• LO2. Identifies ethical problems in the context of the profession and has the ability to respond to them.
• LO3. Acquires fundamental knowledge of bioethics and applies it to clinical bioethics through the analysis and resolution of value conflicts.
• LO4. Become aware of the importance of transforming ethical values into ethical attitudes for excellent development of the profession.
• LO5. Acts with commitment and responsibility in common situations and in those specific to the profession.
• LO6. Ethically analyze situations of injustice and inequalities and propose compensation measures.
• LO7. Knows how to act in complex situations or situations that require the development of new solutions.
• LO8. Collects and interprets data and information on which to base their conclusions, which include reflections on social, scientific or ethical issues in the field of human nutrition and dietetics.

Competencies

General skills

• Demonstrate commitment to the profession and its values, with continuous improvement in practice, striving for excellence in the care of individuals, families and the community.

Specific skills

• Act in accordance with ethical principles and manage healthcare and nutritional information securely, bearing in mind its essential importance for diet and nutrition specialists.

Basic skills

• Students can apply their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional manner and have competencies typically demonstrated through drafting and defending arguments and solving problems in their field of study.
• Students have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data (usually within their field of study) in order to make judgments that include reflection on relevant social, scientific and ethical issues.

Core skills

• Be a critical thinker before knowledge in all its dimensions. Show intellectual, cultural and scientific curiosity and a commitment to professional rigor and quality.
• Exercise active citizenship and individual responsibility with a commitment to the values of democracy, sustainability and universal design, through practice based on learning, service and social inclusion.

Content

Module I. Ethical foundation

1. Anthropology
   1. The human being, a multidimensional and multirelational being
   2. The ethical dimension of the human person
   3. Human dignity
   4. Human rights and justice
2. Ethics
   1. Morals and ethics
   2. The two dimensions of the moral life
   3. Ethical theories
3. Deontology
   1. Professional ethics
   2. Professional duties and professional excellence
   3. Presentation and analysis of the Code of Ethics for the profession of dietitian-nutritionist

Module II. Bioethics and biolaw

1. Bioethics
   1. Nature and objectives of bioethics
   2. Criteria and methodologies for making decisions
   3. Bioethics committees: the role of the dietitian-nutritionist
2. Biolaw
   1. Concept of biorights
   2. Relationships between ethics and law
   3. Legal responsibility of the dietitian-nutritionist

Module III. Ethics of the health relationship

1. Privacy and confidentiality
   1. Privacy and confidentiality: concept and ethical foundation
   2. Ethical and legal regulation
   3. Exceptions
   4. Current difficulties in protecting privacy and confidentiality
   5. Analysis of situations applied to the profession of dietitian-nutritionist
2. Shared decisions: information and informed consent
   1. Right to information and informed consent: ethical foundation
   2. Informed consent: a process
   3. Exceptions
   4. Informed consent forms
   5. Analysis of situations applied to the profession of dietitian-nutritionist
3. End of life
   1. Die today
   2. Ethical aspects of interventions at the end of life: therapeutic obstinacy, refusal of treatment, euthanasia, assisted suicide and palliative care
   3. Documents of advance wishes and advance planning of health decisions
   4. Practical cases applied to the profession of dietitian-nutritionist
4. Beginning of life
   1. Epistemological status of the embryo
   2. Ethical and legal aspects at the beginning of life
   3. Practical cases applied to the profession of dietitian-nutritionist

Module IV. Research ethics, environment and food industry

1. Research with human beings
   1. Ethical problems in the environment of research with human beings
   2. Ethical criteria for research in the profession of dietitian-nutritionist
   3. Animal research: the "animal rights" debate
2. Environmental ethics
   1. The major environmental problems
   2. Nature and objectives of environmental ethics
   3. Diversity of environmental ethics and their proposals
   4. Genetically modified organisms
   5. Environmental responsibility in the profession of dietitian-nutritionist
3. Business ethics
   1. Concept of business ethics
   2. Ethics and food industry
   3. Analysis of ethical conflicts in the field of business ethics in the profession of dietitian-nutritionist

Evaluation

According to the Academic Regulations for undergraduate studies at UVic-UCC, there is only one official call for applications that provides for two different evaluation periods:

• Ordinary period, which takes place as part of the training process and within the school period.
• Complementary evaluation period, in which the student can be evaluated again for the tasks, activities or tests that he or she did not pass satisfactorily within the framework of the first period.

Ordinary period

Continuous evaluation of the activities carried out by the student is carried out through:

• Reading exam (15%): 1 reading activity (book or set of texts) is done. [Individual activity. This part is retrievable.]
• Practical case resolution activities (35%): 2 practical case resolution activities are carried out. [Collective activity. This part is not recoverable.]
• Summary exam (50%): includes all 4 modules. [Individual activity. This part is retrievable.]

The final grade for the subject is the result of the weighting of the grades obtained in each of the parts. The subject is passed if a grade of ≥5 is obtained. In the exams, the average grade must be higher than 5 and no exam must have a grade lower than 4.5.

Complementary evaluation period

Students who do not pass some of the activities considered retakeable may retake them during this period, as long as the total number of parts of the subject not passed does not represent 50% of the final grade.

Important

Plagiarism or copying someone else's work is penalized in all universities and, according to the UVic-UCC coexistence rules, constitute serious or very serious faults. Therefore, during the course of this subject, plagiarism or the improper appropriation of texts or ideas from other people (see What is considered plagiarism?) and the improper or undeclared use of artificial intelligence in an activity automatically result in suspension or other disciplinary measures.

To cite texts and materials appropriately, you must consult the academic citation guidelines and guidelines available on the UVic Library website.

Methodology

Face-to-face activities are combined, that is, lecture classes (or reading notes and articles in the blended learning mode) with activities such as text commentary, solving practical cases, debates... Autonomous activities consist of studying the syllabus, reading and analyzing texts, film reviews, etc.

Bibliography

Key references

• Beauchamp, T.L., Childress, J.F. (2019). Principles of Biomedical Ethics (8 ed.). Oxford University Press.
• Boladeras, M. (2022). ¿Puede la bioética poner límites a la ciencia? Tecnos.
• Cambra-Badii, I., Busquets, E., Terribas-Sala, N., Baños, J.E. (2024). Bioethics. Foundations, applications and challenges. CRC Press.
• Gracia, D. (2019). Bioética mínima. Triacastela.
• Sasia, P.M. (Coord)- (2018). La perspectiva ética. Tecnos.

Further reading

Teachers will provide complementary bibliography and compulsory reading throughout the course via the Virtual Campus.