Designing the Genes of Future Generations:
A Public Forum on Assisted Human Reproduction & Genetics
Wednesday, May 7, 2008 (7:30PM)
Michelin Theatre, Discovery Centre,1593 Barrington St.
Click here for directions to the Discovery Centre
As screening for genetic abnormalities becomes more and more prevalent as part of prenatal care and assisted human reproduction, we open up a host of important and contentious ethical questions. Are these screening programs part of preventative medicine? What sorts of genetic conditions should we allow screening for? Why? Who all is affected, positively or negatively by these practices? What should our way forward be with these technologies? Come participate in a panel discussion lead by experts in the field that will cover issues relating to the science and ethics of reprogenetics.
Meredith Schwartz , Philosopher & Bioethicist, is a student in philosophy specializing in ethics, feminist ethics, bioethics, health care ethics and policy. She is particularly interested in social justice and the differing impact of medical policy on vulnerable groups both nationally and internationally. Meredith has been involved with public health education and outreach groups since junior high school and one of her objectives is to make ethical issues relevant and accessible to general and patient populations. Her first book, which she coauthored with Tara Johnson, Gestational Trophoblastic Neoplasia (Your Health Press; March 2007), continues this goal by providing patients with an accessible guide to understanding the treatment and etiology of this rare group of conditions. Her recent scholarly work on “Genetic Risk and Trust” won the Nathalie Des Rosiers Audacity of Imagination Award from the Law Commission of Canada (2005). She was the first recipient of the Douglas Kinsella Doctoral Award for Research in Bioethics in 2005. She holds a Canada Graduate Scholarship from CIHR (2005-2008) and a Fondation Trudeau Foundation Scholarship (2006-2009). Meredith’s supervisor is Dr. Susan Sherwin.
Linda Hamilton, Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, is currently the medical director at the Atlantic Assisted Reproductive Therapies clinic (AART) in Halifax. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics in the Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University. She completed her medical degree at the University of Calgary. Her residency in Obstetrics and Gynaecology was completed at Dalhousie University, as was her fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. She practices as a reproductive endocrinologist at the Atlantic Assisted Reproductive Therapies clinic in Halifax and also general obstetrics at the IWK hospital in Halifax.
