Public forum on ethical issues in health care

By Sandi Gettys

A new six-week community education course exploring contemporary issues in health care ethics will begin Wednesday, February 9, 2005, as part of the UCSF Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). The course is open to the public and will discuss issues in news, such as stem cells, reproductive issues, end of life issues, rights of the mentally ill, privacy, and the drug approval process.

The course will provide new ways to consider the questions, and help to articulate an informed perspective as one makes decisions about personal health and the health of society.

Classes will meet from 7 to 8:45 pm on Wednesdays at UCSF Medical Sciences Building lobby at 513 Parnassus Ave., San Francisco. On the evening of the event, registration begins at 6:30 pm. Tuition for each course is $85. To register, visit http://lifelonglearning.ucsf.edu. For more information, call UCSF Public Affairs at (415) 476-2557.

FEBRUARY 9—ETHICAL ISSUES IN REPRODUCTION—Elena Gates, MD, professor and interim chair, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences

FEBRUARY 16—RIGHTS OF THE MENTALLY ILL—Daryl Steinberg, Esq., of counsel, Hanson, Bridgett, Marcus, Vlahos, Rudy

FEBRUARY 23—CONFIDENTIALITY AND PRIVACY IN HEALTH CARE: NEW DEVELOPMENTS—Joanna Weinberg, JD, LLM, UCSF associate adjunct professor of health policy and ethics in law

MARCH 2—FROM FEEDING TUBES TO ASSISTED SUICIDE: UNDERSTANDING ETHICAL CHALLENGES AT THE END OF LIFE—Steven Z. Pantilat, MD, associate professor of clinical medicine; director, Palliative Care Service and Palliative Care Leadership Center

MARCH 9—STEM CELLS: HOPE, HYPE, AND ETHICAL DILEMMAS—Bernard Lo, MD, professor of medicine; director, Program in Medical Ethics

MARCH 16—DO WE NEED TO RETHINK THE DRUG APPROVAL PROCESS?—Bill Soller, PhD, clinical professor, department of clinical pharmacy; director of Center for Consumer Self-Care, and Lisa Bero, PhD, professor, department of clinical pharmacy, School of Pharmacy; core faculty, Institute for Health Policy Studies

UCSF Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) is a community education program for adult learners sponsored by the UCSF Schools of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy, the UCSF Medical Center, the UCSF Public Affairs Department and the University of California Academic Geriatric Resource Program. The program is supported in party by a grant from the Bernard Osher Foundation.