Medical Ethics and Law

The MA in Medical Ethics and Law consists of four 30-credit taught modules and a 60-credit dissertation.
When taken part-time the four taught modules are completed in the first year, with the dissertation being completed in the second year. The part-time mode of study is designed to meet the needs of healthcare practitioners and others who wish to combine study for the MA with full-time employment. The part time programme requires only 12 days attendance in year 1 and one day (a Research Methods study day in October) in year 2. Many second year students find it useful to come to Keele more frequently, to meet their supervisors, attend talks by visiting speakers, and use other university facilities. Others, especially those who live some distance away, prefer to keep in touch via email or phone, or use a combination of methods.
The full-time MA is completed in one year. Students begin work on the dissertation alongside the taught modules and submit it at the start of September.
Students taking the MA by modular study may take one or more taught modules per year for a period of up to four years, followed by the dissertation in the subsequent year. (Maximum five years in total.) The Semester 1 modules must normally be completed before the Semester 2 modules.
Some students may not want to do the entire MA Programme. These students may exit the programme after completing the taught modules. Successful completion of all four taught modules (120 credits) leads to the award of a Postgraduate Diploma in Medical Ethics and Law; while successful completion any two taught modules (60 credits) leads to the award of a Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Ethics and Law.
Moral Theory and Medical Ethics (30 credits)
This module equips students with a knowledge of key ethical theories, frameworks and prinicples that inform academic debates in medical and healthcare ethics, and enables them to use these tools to analyse practical moral problems in medicine and healthcare. It also provides students with a practical understanding of the norms and conventions of academic argument and writing in applied ethics.
Topics covered typically include:
consequentialism
deontology
virtue ethics
principlism
autonomy and paternalism
the ethical foundations of consent
liberty and toleration
evaluating and constructing ethical arguments
introduction to the library and electronic resources
how to write essays in ethics
Principles of Medical Law (30 credits)
This module aims to equips students with a knowledge of key principles, cases and statutes in medical law. it enables them to critique aspects of medical law and to apply their knowledge of the law to practices in medicine and healthcare, and provides them with a practical understanding of the norms and conventions of academic argument and writing in medical law.
Topics covered typically include:
introduction to law
use of cases and statutes
healthcare law and the concept of health
regulation and self-regulation in the healthcare system
law and consent
capacity
professional negligence
mental health law
confidentiality and the law
the relationship between law and morality
writing law essays
legal arguments and referencing
Life, Death and the Human Body (30 credits)
This module enables students to extend their knowledge of ethical and legal concepts, principles and theories, especially those relating to the moral and legal status of persons and human bodies and the value and boundaries of human life, and to apply such principles to practical issues in healthcare and medical practice including intervention at the beginning and end of life and modification of the human body.
Topics covered typically include:
abortion: ethical and legal issues
regulating reproduction
selective reproduction and saviour siblings
euthanasia: ethical issues
death, dying and the law
advance directives
post mortem organ transplant
treatment of intersex children
transgender, medicine and the law
assignment guidance and feedback
Healthcare, Justice and Society (30 credits)
This module enables students to apply and extend their knowledge of ethical and legal concepts, principles and theories in the context of practical issues in healthcare affecting the relations between healthcare practitioners, patients and wider society, and to acquire knowledge and critical understanding of a range of contemporary ethical and legal controversies surrounding a range of such issues.
Topics covered typically include:
biomedical research ethics and law
ethical issues in bio-banking
ethical issues in stem cell policy
criminal regulation of medicine
conscientious objection in healthcare
healthcare and international law
ethics and law of healthcare resource allocation.
The module also includes guidance for part-time students on progression to the dissertation stage.
Dissertation (60 credits)
The dissertation provides an opportunity for students to use the knowledge and skills acquired during their programme of study to undertake a more extended piece of work on a topic of their choice. The module consists of independent supervised study leading to the production of a 15,000 to 20,000-word dissertation.
The dissertation offers students an opportunity to develop basic research skills to the level at which a competent piece of work at Masters level can be undertaken. A student achieving pass level in the dissertation should be equipped for independent research at a higher level. Dissertation topics are chosen by the students themselves and must relate to an issue within the broad area of health care law or ethics. No primary empirical research is undertaken for this module.
Some students start the course with a clear idea about what they want to write about - often an ethical issue from within their own practice - but others find and develop particular interests as the course progresses. Recent dissertation topics have included:
Rights and fertility treatment
Research ethics committees
Organ and tissue retention
Euthanasia and end of life decision making
Withdrawal of treatment
Definitions of death
Pregnancy, labour, and consent
Advance directives and autonomy
Human experimentation
Rationing and age discrimination
Rationing and suicide attempts
Occupational health
Children and research trials
Surrogacy
Veterinary ethics
If there is a particular area you wish to write about and would like to discuss this prior to applying for the course, please contact us.