Please be assured that the course does not presuppose previous formal use or training in any philosophical or medical course. The course content is presented at the introductory level, and is successfully completed by students from both inside and outside health care curricula. No matter what your educational major, you should be able to function nicely inside the academic parameters of this course.

You can expect to learn about many of the most-frequently discussed ethical dilemmas in medicine today, as well as some classical moral background which informs and structures analysis of those dilemmas. Our goal is to finish the course with the tools needed to confront the moral aspects of a medical situation, conceptually analyze them, and generate the possible solutions to the dilemma. At the same time, the student will strive to understand the moral ramifications of implementing competing solutions.

If you complete this course and do well, you will be able to:

• Discuss and define relevant concepts, such as "death", "brain death", "suicide", "informed consent", "extraordinary means", "euthanasia", "genetic engineering", etc. Identify and evaluate the principal ethical theories, including Classical, Natural law, Kantian, Utilitarian, and social contract theories. Use these theories in the analysis of biological and medical controversies.
• Understand the role of reason and argument in ethical decision making.

The required textbook for this course is:

• Bio-Medical Ethics, PHI 227, NVCC, ed. by Beauchamp et al; Publisher: Thomson Custom Solutions, ISBN 0-495-49552-9 
• There is also an optional text which may be helpful to you: Cases in Bioethics, Bette-Jane Crigger, 3rd Edition, published by St. Martin's Press, New York.. 1998, ISBN 0-312-15269-8

For information on how to order your textbooks, go to http://eli.nvcc.edu/books/

Your course grade will be determined by 2 papers and 3 exams, according to the following points:

There are 3 exams in this course. You are expected to take your examinations at one of the NVCC campus Testing Centers. Be sure to allow enough time to complete your exam before the Testing Center closes; Testing Centers have specific policies relating to the administration of ELI exams. You will need to take a photo ID, your NovaConnect empl ID number, and the appropriate Exam Pass when you go to the Testing Center.  

For Testing Center locations, hours of operation and policies, click here.

For information on taking exams outside of the metropolitan area, click here.

I am here to help you succeed in this course. Occasionally questions or problems may arise. Here is how to contact me when they do:

E-mail :mgregory@nvcc.edu
Telephone : (703) 323-3347.

1. Use your web browser to connect to http://www.nvcc.edu/bbstart. Follow the directions to determine your email, Blackboard and VIVA account user names and passwords.
2. Access your email account and make sure you know how to use it; you will be required to use this account for all course-related email.
3. Log on to Blackboard at http://learn.vccs.edu.
4. Click on this course under "My Courses." Review the entire course to make sure you understand what will be required of you. Then start completing the assignments.

Please note that account generation takes approximately one week from the time of your paid registration. If you cannot log on after one week, contact the IT Help Desk. If you can log on to Blackboard, but your course isn't listed, please contact ELI or your instructor.

revised 11/07