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The Ethics of Gender Adjustment  

On 10 November 2017 the Center for the Study of Bioethics organized the lecture "The Ethics of Gender Adjustment", in cooperation with the Serbian Unit and European Division of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics, as well as with the Ilija M. Kolarac Endowment. The lecturers were Assistant Professor Jelena Simić (Faculty of Law, Union University in Belgrade), Jelena Vidić, psychologist, and Kristijan Ranđelović from the XY Spectrum organization. Jelena Tasić moderated the lecture.



THE CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF BIOETHICS AND THE EUROPEAN DIVISION OF THE UNESCO CHAIR IN BIOETHICS ORGANIZED SERIES OF LECTURES TITLED “ABUSE OF THE CHILDREN IN THE FAMILY”



The first lecture in the series was titled "Abuse of children and divorce: responsibility of perpetrators, responsibility of institutions". It was held at the Ilija M.Kolarac Endowment on December 11, 2017. The lecturers were Aneta Lakić, PhD, neuropsychiatrist and Director of the Clinic for Neurology and Psychiatry for Children, Nevenka Žegarac, PhD, Professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences at the Department for Social Work and Social Policy and Milena Banić, attorney.
 
The second lecture in the series was titled "Health professionals and response to abuse of children through multi-sectoral work". It was held at the Institute for Social Sciences  on December 21, 2017. The lecturers were Milica Pejović Milovančević, PhD,  child psychiatrist and Head of the Clinic for Children and Youth of the Institute for Mental Health, Ivana Milosavljević Đukić, PhD, from the Center for the Protection of Infants, Children and Youth, and Ivana Ramić, Judge of the First Municipal Court in Belgrade.



The third lecture in the series was titled "Abuse of children in the family: The importance of timely reaction of institutions’’.  It was held at the Ilija M.Kolarac Endowment on December 22, 2017. The lecturers were Biljana Sinanovic, Judge of the Supreme Court, Danijela Jokanovic, Deputy Public Prosecutor of the First Municipal Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade, and Vukašin Čobeljić, psychologist at the University Children's Hospital in Belgrade.

The fourth lecture in the series was titled ''Abuse of  children: the role of society in understanding the problem''. It was held at the Institute for Social Sciences  on December 28, 2017. The lecturers were Oliver Vidojević, PhD, psychiatrist at  the Clinic for Children and Youth of the Institute of Mental Health,  Zorica Mršević, PhD, Scientific Advisor at the Institute of Social Sciences, and Smiljka Tomanovic, Full Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy of the  University of Belgrade, Department of Sociology.


WORLD BIOETHICS DAY - CELEBRATION 

On 19 October 2017, the Rectorate of Belgrade University hosted a ceremonial Academy celebrating the World Bioethics Day. The Center for the Study of Bioethics and the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics co-organized this event. CSB Director Vojin Rakic delivered a welcoming speech. Lectures were held by CSB Regular Members Amira Fazlagić, Sonja Pavlović,Dušanka Krajinović and Milica Prostran. The celebration was greeted by the highest representatives of the University of Belgrade, as well as other relevant institutions.

 

Center for the Study of Bioethics and the Faculty of Philosophy of Rijeka University (Croatia): International conference "Enhancements in biomedicine and freedom"

On 26 September 2016 the Center for the Study of Bioethics organized in cooperation with the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Rijeka the international conference ‘’Enhancements in biomedicine and freedom’’.


Lecture: Kevin Zollman (Carnegie Mellon University, USA)

On 24 September 2016 the Center for the Study of Bioethics organized in cooperation with the Serbian Unit and European Division of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics, as well as with the Institute for Social Sciences, the lecture "Ethics, Uncertainty, and the Benefits of Scientific Diversity". The lecturer was Kevin J.S. Zollman from Carnegie Mellon University (USA).


Lecture: Michael Wilde (University of Kent, UK)

On 21 September 2016 the Center for the Study of Bioethics organized in cooperation with the Serbian Unit and European Division of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics, as well as with the Institute for Social Sciences, the lecture "Evidence of mechanisms in medicine". The lecturer was Michael Wilde from the University of Kent (UK).


Lecture: Helena Siipi (University of Turku, Finland)

On 21 September 2016 the Center for the Study of Bioethics organized in cooperation with the Serbian Unit and European Division of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics, as well as with the Institute for Social Sciences, the lecture "Genetically modified food and the claim of unnaturalness". The lecturer was Professor Helena Siipi from the University of Turku (Finland) .


Center for the Study of Bioethics and the Faculty of Philosophy of Belgrade University: International conference "Philosophy of Scientific Experimentation"

On 22-23 September 2016 the Center for the Study of Bioethics organized in cooperation with the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Belgrade the conference ‘’Philosophy of Scientific Experimentation’’.


BIOETHICS AND PERSONALIZED MEDICINE

Professor Vojin Rakić, PhD, gave a lecture on 4 April 2016 at the Institute for Biological Research "Siniša Stanković", University of Belgrade, entitled "Bioethics and Personalized Medicine".


CSB organized workshop "Bioethics Education for Journalists"

The Center for the Study of Bioethics has started with the implementation of the project "Bioethics Education for Journalist". The project is supported by a consortium of international and Serbian companies.

The realization of this project has begun on 22nd December, with educational workshop. Attendees were journalists and editors-in-chief of some of the most important media houses in Serbia.

The workshop was moderated by Amira Fazlagic. The introductory speech was delivered by Vojin Rakic, followed by speeches of Dusica Krajnovic, Sonja Pavlovic and Amira Fazlagic. After the workshop, dinner party was held.

Workshop in progress 

Lecturers

Vojin Rakic gives interview for RTS 19:30h News  

Dinner party


WORLD BIOETHICS DAY

The UNESCO Chair in Bioethics (Haifa) announces the First celebration of WORLD BIOETHICS DAY globally on 19th October 2016. It is decided to celebrate the common program by all the Units in the world. The theme for this year's celebration is 'Human Dignity and Human Rights' (Article 3 of Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights).


CSB/Hastings conference held in Belgrade

The international conference "Enhancing Understanding of Enhancement", organized by the Center for the Study of Bioethics in collaboration with The Hastings Center, took place in Belgrade on October 27-28. Among the participants, who came from 24 countries representing all five continents, were some of the most prominent contemporary bioethicists: John Harris (keynote speaker), Erik Parens (keynote speaker), Anders Sandberg, Michael Hauskeller, Robert Sparrow, Maartje Schermer, Ineke Bolt and many others.

At the event's opening ceremony, the participants were first greeted by Vojin Rakić, Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics and Research Professor at the Institute for Social Sciences. Afterwards the participants were addressed by  Mildred Solomon, President of The Hastings Center, and Srđan Verbić, Minister of Science, Education and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia. The final speaker to address the audience at the opening ceremony was Aleksandar Damjanović, Deputy Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics and Director of the Institute for Psychiatry, University of Belgrade.

The conference lasted for two days, with simultaneous presentation panels taking place in two halls of the Imel Group venue.

All of the most prominent Serbian media have reported on this significant scientific event, which has also received outstanding public attention in other countries.

RECORDED PRESENTATIONS AT THE CONFERENCE

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Are you my mother? How new reproductive technologies are reshaping what it means to be a parent.

On 29 October the Center for the Study of Bioethics, in collaboration with the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, organized the lecture "Are you my mother? How new reproductive technologies are reshaping what it means to be a parent.". The lecturer was Robert Sparrow.
Robert Sparrow is a Professor in the Philosophy Program, a Chief Investigator in the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science, as well as an adjunct Professor in the Centre for Human Bioethics, at Monash University, where he works on ethical issues raised by new technologies.


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Lecture and Interview of Vojin Rakić in Innsbruck

CSB Director Vojin Rakić has been invited by the University of Innsbruck (Austria) and the Management Center Innsbruck (MCI) to present CSB as a best practice model. On 8 May he delivered a lecture on that subject in Innsbruck. During his stay in Innsbruck, Rakić also gave a 40 minute interview for a Austrian documentary film entitled „The Future Baby“.




Brocher workshop


CSB co-organized a seminar on genetic counseling from 20 to 22 May with its German partner Charite Hospital. The title of the seminar was “Genetics, Testing, Screening and Science, Paving the Way for a Decision Making Model in Genetic Counseling”. The project has been funded by the Brocher Foundation. This is one of three projects from the field of genetic counseling in which CSB participates.
One of the seminar participants was the renowned American bioethicist, Professor Arthur Caplan.CSB representatives at Brocher were Professor Vojin Rakić (www.vojinrakic.com), Dr Hajrija Mujović-Zornić and Professor Dušanka Krajnović.


RTS in new premises of the Center for the Study of Bioethics

On 30 April 2015, a TV-crew of RTS (Radio Television of Serbia) recorded a programabout junior staff members of the Center for the Study of Bioethics.  The interviewed researchers were: Olivera Z. Mijušković (PhM), Aleksandra Radosavljević and Dragoljub Kaurin (PhD).CSB Director Vojin Rakić was also interviewed.


Seminar „Bioethics in the classroom“


On 25 April the first part of the seminar „Bioethics in the classroom“ was realized. The seminar has been accredited by The Agency for the Advancement of Education of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development. The seminar was organized by The Center for the Development of Liberalism, with the support of the Center for the Study of Bioethics. The first day of the seminar was dedicated to subjects of introduction in bioethics, abortion and euthanasia. The meeting was opened by Professor Vojin Rakić.


Lecture in partnership with the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade


On 22 April, the Center for the Study of Bioethics and the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Belgradeorganized and realized a debate headlined „Gender Changes in Serbia“. Atthe meeting participants debated on the status of transsexual individuals in society, in the perspectiveof medical, legal and philosophical issues arising in its context. The debate was held at The Faculty of Philosophy.
Presentations were delivered by experts in genital surgery, in which Serbia occupies one of the leading positions in the world: Professor Miroslav Đorđević, a leading genital surgeonwho has performed hundreds of surgical procedures of gender change in different countries, Dr Dragana Duišin, Head of the Department for Transgender Conditions at The Clinical Center of Serbia (KBS Srbije), Jelena Simić,  Assistant Professor at the Law Faculty of Union University. One of the participants in the debate was Kristian Ranđelović, activist of the organization „Multiple discrimination – trans program“.


Guest lectures by Professor VojinRakić

Between 26 March and 8 April Professor Vojin Rakićheld two guest lectures from the field of bioethics and participated in one a debate:
1.In the framework of the Belgrade Seminar Series for Analytic Philosophy and Logic (BAL), he held on 26 March at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Belgrade the lecture „Moral Enhancement, Freedom of the Will and Change of Moral Status”.

2. On 30 March Vojin Rakić deliveredthe lecture „Pharmacogenomics: Bioethical Aspects“ at The Institute for Biological Research „Siniša Stanković“ (IBISS)
3. In the organization of The Kolarac Foundation and The Institute for Philosophy of the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade, within a forum session „Morality and Animals“, a final debate „Morally Relevant Individuals“was held on 8 April, 2015. Participants in the debate were: Professor Vojin Rakić, PhD (Center for the Study of Bioethics), Assistant Professor Ivan Vuković, PhD (Faculty of Philosophy), Assistant Professor Miljana Milojević, PhD (Faculty of Philosophy) and Nataša Vukmirović (Link-plus Association).



Continuous Medical Education headlined „Education for Members of Ethics Committees in Serbia“

On 6 April, the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Belgrade, in partnership with the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and with the support of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, organized a seminar within the program Continuous Medical Education. The title of the seminar was„Education for Members of Ethics Committees in Serbia“. This program of Continuous Medical Education was also accredited by The Council for Health of The Republic of Serbia.
The lecturers were, in order of their presentations: Professor Vojin Rakić(CSB, Institute of Social Sciences), Dr Hajrija Mujović Zornić (CSB,  Institute of Social Sciences), Professor Dušanka Krajnović (CSB,Faculty of Pharmacy), Professor Aleksandar Damjanović (CSB, Faculty of Medicine), Professor Ivana Novaković, (Faculty of Medicine), Professor Zoran Todorović (Faculty of Medicine), Professor Slobodan Savić (Faculty of Medicine ), Professor Milica Bajčetić, (Faculty of Medicine) and Vera Zdravković (Faculty of Medicine).



Symposium „Reproductive Health in Serbia“


The Center for the Study of Bioethics organized and realized the symposium „Reproductive Health in Serbia – Prejudices, Facts and Expectations“within the Program of Continuous Medical Education. The program is accredited by The Council for Health of The Republic of Serbia.
In a full Imel Group’s hall the conference was opened by the Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, Professor Vojin Rakić. The moderator and manager of the entire seminar was Professor Amira Fazlagić.
Presentations were delivered by various experts in the field: Professor Mirjana Rašević, Professor Dušanka Krajnović, Professor Marina Odalović, Professor Aleksandar Vuksanović, DrSonja Pavlović, Professor Miroslava Gojnić-Dugalić, Professor Milica Džinić and DrHajrija Mujović-Zornić.



Annual Ceremony of Center for the Study of Bioethics

The Center for the Study of Bioethics has organized on 10 March 2015  its Annual Ceremony in order to celebrate a successful year of the Center's activities.
The Annual Ceremony was opened by Professor Vladimir Bumbasirevic, Rector of Belgrade University. He underlined both the domestic and foreign significance of CSB.  The Rector`s speech was followed by lectures of Professor Aleksandar Damjanovic (Belgrade University, Director of the Institute for Psychiatry of the Clinical Center of Serbia) and Professor Elvio Baccarini (University of Rijeka in Croatia). All three speeches were largely devoted to the publications of Professor Vojin Rakic.
At the Ceremony, the CSB Director Vojin Rakic delivered thanksgiving certificates to people who had the most significant contribution to the activities and growth of CSB: prof.dr Vladimir Bumbasirevic, prof. dr Milan Cirkovic, prof. dr Aleksandar Damjanovic, prof.dr Amira Fazlagic, prof. dr Dusanka Krajnovic, PhM Olivera Z. Mijuskovic, dr Sonja Pavlovic, prof. dr Milica Prostran, prof. dr Mirjana Rasevic and dipl. ing. Mirko Urosevic.
The CSB Annual Ceremony was followed by significant media coverage.
The choir Collegium  Musicum was responsible for the artistic part of the Ceremony. 

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Promotion of Elvio Baccarini's book  - "In a Better World Public? Reason and Biotechnologies"


Ther Center for the Study of Bioethics and the Institute for Social Sciences orginized the promotion of the book In a Better World Public? Reason and Biotechnologies, published by Professor Elvio Baccarini from the University of Rijeka in Croatia. Dr Nebojsa Zelic, Senior Teaching Assistent from the Faculty of Philosophy of Rijeka University, discussed Baccarini`s book in depth. The talks were followed by a debate in which various people from the audience participated.



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The Center for the Study of Bioethics signed an agreement on cooperation and the formation of a representative office of CSB at the European institute of Oncology (EIO) in Milan

EIO is one of the most renowned institutes/clinics of that kind, where research and treatment of malignant diseases is conducted. The EIO employs 600 physicians and other medical personnel. Its ccapacity is 230 beds. EIO is known for the use of the most advanced technologies in oncological surgery, such as robotics. Professor Giovanni Boniolo has been appointed as the President of the Steering Board of CSB's representative office at EIO. Professor Giovanni Boniolo holds a PhD both in philosophy and in physics, and he is a Director of the Biomedical Humanities Unit at the European Institute of Oncology. He is also Full Professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Milan. Apart from Professor Boniolo, in the Steering Board of CSB's representative office are dr Marco Annoni (University of Milan), Luca Chiapperino (EIO) and dr Maria Damjanovicova (EIO).


The Center for the Study of Bioethics Announces its Collaboration with Global Bioethics Initiative


We are happy to announce a collaboration between CSB and Global Bioethics Initiative (GBI), a United Nations-associated non-profit organization based in New York City. We have teamed up because we share the common goal of promoting awareness and discussion of bioethical issues. Our cooperation should help facilitate the exchange of information, the organization of seminars and conferences, and the advancement of other activities that are important to the development of bioethics. We hope that by combining our networks we will be able to reach more people.

Many of the most reputable names in bioethics are members of GBI, including Thomas Pogge, Arthur Caplan, Peter Singer, James Hughes, and actress Mia Farrow. Check out their website: http://globalbioethics.org/



Pursuant to our shared goals, we would like to encourage researchers, scientists, and students from Serbia to participate in GBI’s International Bioethics Summer Program. The program will be held in Manhattan from June 15 – July 18, 2015. Learn more about the program and application procedures on the program’s website: http://summerschool.globalbioethics.org/



Summer School of Bioethics in New York - CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

Genetic Quality Management - Genes, Information, You & Health

On 28 and 29 November 2015 the Center for the Study of Bioethics and the Charite Krankenhaus in Berlin co-organized the seminar "Genetic Quality Management - Genes, Information, You & Health".
The seminar was held in Berlin in the framework of a common project of CSB and the Charite Krankenhaus. It is funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. The meeting received institutional support and/or support in human resources from the Faculty of Biology, the Institute for Social Sciences, the Faculty of Pharmacy and the Institute for Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering of the University of Belgrade. Ten scholars from Serbia attended the seminar, mostly CSB members.

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21st Century -An Era without Rare Diseases?

On September 23th 2014, the Center for the Study of Bioethics in partnership with the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics organized a seminar ”21st Century -An Era without Rare Diseases?". It gathered together the most famous Serbian experts in this field who have illuminated the problem of rare diseases from biomedical, ethical and legal perspectives. The seminar was opened by Professor Vojin Rakic. A special guest was Jelena Milosevic, President of the International Association for the F.O.P. and former President of the National Organization for Rare Diseases of Serbia - NORBS. Five experts, Professor Amira Fazlagic, dr Sonja Pavlovic, Dr Hajrija Mujovic-Zornic, Dr Dusanka Krajnovic  and Dr Nikola Vojvodic delivered their presentations. The seminar was moderated by Olivera Z. Mijuskovic, PhM.

In Serbia, there are more than 600,000 people suffering from rare diseases. Individually, each disease is rare, but when taken all together, the number of patients constitutes a serious problem. Similar statistics exist for other countries. A number of these diseases are inherited. With the advent of advanced biotechnology in the field of genetics, modern medicine is able to deal with them successfully. The question is whether these diseases could be completely eradicated in the future. Participants in the seminar tried to provide some answers to this question.

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Seminar “Disaster Bioethics: In the Aftermath of the Floods in Serbia”

On 10 June 2014, the seminar “Disaster Bioethics: In the Aftermath of the Floods in Serbia” gathered a number of bioethicists, philosophers, physicists, and psychologists who have all tried to shed light on bioethical problems that have surfaced regarding the recent catastrophic floods in Serbia. The seminar was organized by the Center for the Study of Bioethics in cooperation with the Center for the Promotion of Science. It was opened at the Center for the Promotion of Science by Aleksandra Drecun, the Director of the Center for Promotion of Science, and by the Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, Professor Vojin Rakić. The following presentations were delivered:

Vojin Rakić:  “Do we become more moral when facing disasters?”
Milan M. Ćirković : “Risk analysis: Predictive capability, scalability and selectional effects”
Goran S. Milovanović: “Intuitive risk assessment and the issue of cognitive and moral enhancement”
Ana Vlajković: “Psychological aid in disaster settings: from theory to practice”



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Press Conference on the foundation of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics for Central and Eastern Europe in Belgrade

A press conference on the foundation of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics for Central and Eastern Europe (CAEE) was held in Belgrade on Friday, June 6. The UNESCO Chair in Bioethics for CAEE will reside in Belgrade and will be chaired by Professor Vojin Rakić, the Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, Belgrade, and Head of the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics. The deputies of the chairman are Professor Tomaš Doležal (Research and Development), Czech Republic, and Professor Gabriele Werner-Felmayer (Education), Austria. The Executive Board of the UNSECO Chair in Bioethics for CAEE will also be seated in Belgrade and will be chaired by Professor Milan M. Ćirković from the Astronomical Observatory of Belgrade and the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University. The following associates of the Center for the Study of Bioethics have addressed the journalists:

• Professor Vojin Rakić, Research Professor at the Institute of Social Sciences, Belgrade, Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, Head of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics for CAEE, Head of the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and Chair of the Cambridge Working Group for Bioethics Education in Serbia;

• Professor Amira Fazlagić, Associate Professor, European University, Head of the Department for Research and Development of the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics; Cryo-Save;

• Professor Marina Stamenković Radak, Full Professor, Faculty of Biology, University of Belgrade, Deputy Head of the Department for Education of the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair for Bioethics, Center for the Study of Bioethics;

• dr Goran S. Milovanović, Center for the Study of Bioethics, member of the Executive Board of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics for CAEE. ;


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SEMINAR "BIOETHICS OF LIFE AND DEATH"

The Center for the Study of Bioethics, in partnership with the Center for the Promotion of Science, has organized a seminar entitled "Bioethics of Life and Death", at the Science Club of the Center for Promotion of Science. Guests from the EU, as well as associates of the Center for the Study of Bioethics took part in the seminar. Several issues in relation to the bioethics of life and death were addressed: radical life extension, its possible social and psychological consequences, the question of cell life extension, as well as related issues. The speakers at the seminar were:

• Rosa Rantanen, M.Soc.Sc., Doctoral Candidate, University of Turku, Department of Behavioral Sciences and Philosophy: "Bioethical aspects of radical life extension"
• Marina Stamenković-Radak, Full Professor at the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Biology, Principal Research Fellow at the Institute for Biological Research, Center for the Study of Bioethics: "Cell life extension: costs and benefits?"
• Goran S. Milovanović, PhD, Center for the Study of Bioethics: "The psychology of Methuselah: On possible socio-psychological consequences of radical life extension"

The working language of the seminar was English.

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SEMINAR "DISASTER BIOETHICS: RISK AND RELIEF" OPENED BY MINISTER

The Central and Eastern European Network of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and the Center for the Study of Bioethics, in partnership with the Center for the Promotion of Science and the Center for the Development of Liberalism, have organized the seminar "Disaster Bioethics: Risk and Relief". The seminar has been realized in the framework of the project "COST Action IS1201: Disaster Bioethics: addressing ethical issues triggered by disasters".

The seminar was opened by Srdjan Verbic, the Serbian Minister for Education, Science and Technological Development.

Speakers at the seminar were CSB members Vojin Rakić, Milan Ćirković and Veselin Mitrović, as well as Bianca Buechner from the German Unit of the UENSCO Chair in Bioethics and Sheena Eagan Chamberin from the University of Maryland (USA).

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The Availability of Drugs and Medical Devices to Patients with Rare Diseases

Members of CSB have participated in the organization of the seminar "The Availability of Drugs and Medical Devices to Patients with Rare Diseases". It did so with the Faculty of Pharmacy of Belgrade University and its Student Organizations (BPSA) (coordinated by Vanja Milosevic) and the Department of Social Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Legislation (mentored by Andrijana Milosevic Georgiev). The seminar was held on 7 March 2014 at the Faculty of Pharmacy.
Speakers at the seminar were Darko Laketic, Assistant Minister in the Serbian Ministry of Health, Sonja Pavlovic from the Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering, Snezana Plavsic from the Institute for Public Health "Dr Milan Jovanovic Batut" and Vojin Rakic, Director of the Center for the Study of Bioethics and Chair of the Cambridge Working Group for Bioethics Education in Serbia. Dusanka Krajnovic presented the results of a major project on rare diseases that is funded by the Serbian Minsitry of Education, Science and Technological Development. Further participants at this event were Dragan Djurovic, President of the "Association of Persons with Cystic Fibrosis", and Jelena Tomic, head of the "Association of Patients with Crohn Disease and Ulcerative Colitis''.
The seminar was attended by students of pharmacy from the University in Belgrade, as well as their peers on a student exchange program from Croatia and Slovakia.



THE FOLLOWING LECTURES AND SEMINARS WERE ORGANIZED BY CSB BETWEEN 1 NOVEMBER 2012 AND 1 JANUAR 2014:

 

GENDER VARIATIONS – ACKNOWLEDGING THE LEGAL CONSEQUENCES OF SEX CHANGE IN SERBIA
Members of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, the Cambridge Working Group for Bioethics Education in Serbia, the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and the Center for the Development of Liberalism organized on 2 December 2013 a lecture by Professor Jelena Simic, titled "Gender Variation - Recognizing Legal Consequences of 'Sex Change' in Serbia". During her lecture, Jelena Simic defended the standpoint that new anthropological and historical studies of gender relations, especially since the 1990s, have shown that the dychotomous gender/sex system is not universal and that around the world and in different periods of time there are different cultural responses to the fact that some people do not fit into this binary division, i.e. that they transcend the usual categories of male and female.



MORAL ENHANCEMENT AND FREEDOM

On 29 November 2013, the Belgrade Gallery "Ozon" hosted the event "Moral Enhancement of People and Freedom". It was organized by the Cambridge Working Group for Bioethics Education in Serbia / Center for the Study of Bioethics and the Center for the Promotion of Science. Participants were Professor Vojin Rakić and Professor Aleksandar Damjanović, as well as the popular musician "Rambo Amadeus".


 
OBSERVATION SELECTION EFFECTS AND GLOBAL RISKS

Members of the Center for the Study of Bioethics, the Cambridge Working Group for Bioethics Education in Serbia, the Serbian Unit of the UNESCO Chair in Bioethics and the Center for the Development of Liberalism hosted the lecture "Observation Selection Effects and Global Risks" by Professor Milan Ćirković. The lecture took place on 14 November 2013.


 

Aleksandar Damjanović
On the Philosophy of Suicide – A Psychiatrist’s Perspective 
17 April 2013

Abstract

Philosophical responses to the question of the legitimacy of suicide range between voluntarism and dogmatic theories based on religious prohibition. The lecture includes a deliberation on the prevention of suicide on the basis of classifying suicide as an autonomous or a non-autonomous act. The author considers the phenomenon of paternalism with its ethical consequences as a possible approach to suicide prevention. The work includes the deliberation of various aspects of treatment and prevention of suicide, and gives a blueprint of the definition of philosophical suicide. The author also discusses the operational criteria which could be used as a basis to define philosophical suicide as a clinical entity. The author illustrates his lecture with a number of examples from literature, philosophy and art that he found helpful in the construction of philosophical suicide.
Key words: suicide, philosophy, prevention


Biography
Aleksandar Damjanović, PhD, is an Associate Professor of the Medical School of the University of Belgrade, lecturing on psychiatry. He is an active member of the Serbian Medical Society (SMS), Serbian Association of Psychiatrists. He is also the President of the Psychiatric section of SMS, member of the Drug Agency of the Republic of Serbia, the Board of Editors of the Engrami journal, the Bioethical Society of Serbia, and of the Association of Writers of Serbia. He was a member of the state sub-committee for the selection of drugs to the positive list in the area of CNS in the period between 2002 and 2005, and was a member of the state committee for the evaluation of induced abortions of advanced pregnancies in the period between 2000 and 2010. He has published over 200 bibliographical units at home and abroad. He has also published the following books: Meta-theoretical Psychiatric Experiments (2004), Psycho and Patho-biographies – Construction, Reconstruction or Deconstruction of Personality (2005), Growing Shadow of Darkness – Vivisection of the Psychological Motives of the Horror Genre in Film and Literature (2006), Psychological and Philosophical Ounces, A Guide Through the Apocalypse (2008) and On Mind and Body (2012). Delirium and its Divine Emissary (2009) was his first book of poetry.



Presentation of the book by Veselin Mitrović
The Outstep of Bioethics: New Biotechnologies and Social Aspects of “Enchancement” of the Healthy
10 April 2013
Moderator: Vojin Rakić
Participants:
Marija Bogdanović
Jovan Babić
Nada Sekulić
Veselin Mitrović


Abstract
The breakthrough development of biomedical science and technology since the middle of the 20th century has initiated new moral and social questions that arise from the means of using these advances on healthy people. In order to better understand the consequences of such developments, this book analyzes the use of new biotechnologies (Human enchancement technologies - HET) aimed at “enchancing” healthy people.
The first part of the book analyzes the pro et contra argumentation of three theoretical currents: the tranhumanist, whose representatives openly advocate genetic, prosthetic and cognitive enchancement of the human species – the transition of the human into the posthuman society; the bioconservative, whose representatives see a threat in undermining human dignity, meddling into “Divine affairs” and in changing the nature of the human being; the representatives of the middle current hold that the danger lies in the dialectics of the relation between “capitalism and medicine”. The authors of the middle current view the approachability and use of biotechnology as a resource for the betterment of social positions.
Through the analysis of arguments and positions within the aforementioned currents, the book faces the incoming need for researchers to also focus on researching the instruments of moral enhancement. Thus, for example, the critical analysis of the stances of Nicholas Agar reveals the importance of disgust towards certain actions in the prevention and protection of human life, which is why we reject Agar’s equalization of ability to feel disgust and moral responsibility. The demythologization of the so-called moral disgust is gaining particular importance nowadays in the debates on moral enhancement and the instruments that could prevent massive destruction of the human species. Apart from that, the analysis of Savulescu’s stances heralds his personal moral transition from the moral duty to enhance posterity with the help of genetic engineering to the duty to morally enhance people who might abuse new technologies.
The second part analyzes enhancement technologies that arise from several scientific fields and that are used both on the inside and on the outside of the human body. This analysis creates the possibility of moving along the scientific-theoretical axis, while also giving insight into the ethics of goals and possibilities within the technologies themselves.
The improvement of the quality of life is almost unquestionably accepted as one of society’s paramount values. Hence, the third part of the book had to analyze the socio-cultural consequences of such interventions.


Biography
Veselin Mitrović, PhD, works as a Research Assistant at the Institute for Sociological Studies of the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade. He is involved in a research project on the reproductive rights of women and deals with the issues of genetic engineering and in vitro fertilization. He has cooperated on the following research projects of the Faculty of Philosophy’s Department of Sociology: Postmodernism and Contemporary Anthropology, Cultural Sociology, Sociology of Mass Culture, Traditional and the Modern in Culture. He has also cooperated on the course “Bioethics” of the Department of Philosophy.
His doctoral thesis “The Social Aspects of “Enhancing” Human Beings within the Rim of New Biotechnical Studies” (2011) problematizes the social aspects of genetic interventions, as well as the possible consequences of scientifically based genetic interventions within developed societies. These problems introduce the issue of the non-ethical use of various enhancement technologies. Other than that that, the issues of the relation between ethics, technology and social values, authenticity and identity, as well as the dialectics of the relation between medicine and capitalism are also introduced. Apart from the book The Outstep of Bioethics, Veselin Mitrović has also published several articles in scientific journals and has been involved in a number of domestic and international scientific gatherings dealing with relevant topics: the use of bio-medical interventions on healthy people with the goal of creating an enhanced species.


 

Sandra Radenović
Bioethical education and the reduction of stereotypes and prejudices – the example of the visit to non-hygienic Roma settlements
3 April 2013


Abstract
As part of the program on the Department for Humanistic Sciences of the University of Belgrade’s Medical School, visits to the non-hygienic Roma settlements were organized. The goal of these visits was to realize direct contacts between students and the members of Roma population, so that future doctors could face their own stereotypes and prejudices that could be an impediment in developing high quality doctor-patient relations before actually confronting the patients who are members of the Roma population. In her presentation, the author explains some of the data regarding ethnic stereotypes and prejudices of the student population, as well as the findings RE health care and health problems of the Roma population – data acquired during the aforementioned organized visits to the non-hygienic Roma settlements.


Biography
Sandra S. Radenović was born in Belgrade in 1974. She graduated in 2004 and obtained her Master’s degree from the University of Belgrade’s Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Sociology in 2007 (sociology of inter-ethnical relations). Sandra Radenović defended her doctoral thesis “Doctor-Patient Relations within the Paradigm of Integrative Bioethics” in 2011, at the University of Belgrade’s Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Sociology. This is a pioneering work within the domestic scientific community in the area of bioethics, medical sociology and medical ethics. Sandra Radenović has worked at the Department for Humanistic Sciences of the University of Belgrade’s Medical School since 2006. She also works as a TA, teaching in English at the University of Belgrade’s Medical School. She is a member of the Governing Board of the Bioethical Society of Serbia (BSS) and is one of its founders and. Since 2011 she is Vice-President of the BSS. She is a researcher on a project on rare diseases of the Serbian Ministry of Science and Technology. She is the author of a number of works in the area of sociology of inter-ethnic studies, medical sociology and bioethics, and was s a participant at a number of domestic and international conferences. Sandra was the coordinator of the international conference The 6. Bioethical forum for South-Eastern Europe named “Bioethics-Medicine-Politics” (Belgrade, Serbia, 11.4.-11.7.2010). She is the author of books “Forms of Racism in Serbia after the 5th October Overthrow (2001-2006)” and “Bioethics and Medicine: Doctor-Patient Relations within the Paradigm of Integrative Bioethics” (Akademska knjiga,Novi Sad, 2012).


 

Ayesha Ahmad
Should we erase trauma memories?
5 March 2013


Abstract: Should we erase trauma memories?
In this lecture, I discuss ethical issues surrounding the possibility of the erasure or deletion of trauma evoking memories. Contemporary psychiatric practice and advancements in neuro-ethics are providing greater insight and detail into the nature of our memory and the effects of psychological trauma on our well-being. Since the Vietnam war, the diagnostic category of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has led to the pathologicalisation of trauma and given atrocities such as disasters, humanitarian crisis', and war, our societies face trauma on both a collective and individual scale. However, the experience of trauma is most typically constructed as an individual phenomenon - as a pathological burden affecting our self and our identity of who we want to be. Thus, appeals to a 'cure' or remedy for traumatic experiences are both topical and controversial since the retrieval of our memories is often thought to constitute a defining part of who we are.
To explore the debate, I will present on the nature of trauma, and whether there are virtues in trauma for our human - existential - experience. This is particularly pertinent when there are political ramifications for remembering and/ or forgetting a trauma, and that there could be a functional element to the recognition of trauma as a way of forming a legacy. 
I will then introduce some of the potential modifications to our memory that modern pharmacology and neuroscience can offer to the trauma victim. I will contrast and relativize against other therapeutic methods for trauma such as prayer and community support. Then, I will argue, primarily, that a trauma is unable to be isolated on an individual level, and furthermore, that the erasure of trauma memories does not constitute an enhancement of our potential of whom we can become as persons - rather it inhibits our awareness and responsibility. 


Biography
Currently, I am teaching at University College London, U.K. at the Medical School.
My background is in Philosophy, and my PhD was entitled 'Metaphysics in Scientific Medicine: The Making of the Human Embryo'. I specialize in medical ethics, and am a member of the Clinical Ethics Committee at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Primarily, I am interested in cultural values in medicine, and this is a strand I develop as part of an international research collaboration funded project on disaster and humanitarian medicine ethics. I have given invited lectures to the International Committee of Military Medicine in Switzerland and the Africa Health Congress in South Africa. I have a research link to South Africa.
In parallel, I studied Psychoanalysis at post-graduate level and specialized in trauma, particularly effects of war and torture. I have published on the phenomenology of trauma, and also combine with ethics, in particular, cross-cultural applicability of PTSD and ethical issues surrounding the medical/psychiatric examination of torture victims. 
My areas of interest are cultural values and religious beliefs in medical ethics, clinical ethics committees, pediatric and neonatal ethics. 


 

Andreas Poltermann
Medically Assisted Dignified Death
27 March 2013


Abstract
Unlike active euthanasia (killing on request) which the majority of the population would not forbid but also does not support, many people in Germany declared themselves in favor of the possibility of medical participation in the voluntarily chosen suicide. Also, a third of the German medical professionals can imagine their participation under certain circumstances. What is so interesting regarding the  debate on the medically guided and supported suicide, is the fact that it leads the way out of the ideological controversy between self-determination on the one hand, and the religious interpretations of creation and life as a gift, on the other, and opens up the view to the actual goal of the debates on the “freedom to die“: the improvement of the medical, as a rule palliative, care of dying patients  in a trustworthy dialogue-based relationship toward caretaker, doctor and family member/caregiver. It is my conviction that the freedom to die can and should be realized as self-determination in a dialogue.


Biography
Andreas Poltermann: Director Belgrade Office, Heinrich BoellStiftung. Before that he was Director Division of Political Education of Heinrich Boell Foundation, Berlin. Heinrich Boell Foundation is the German Political Foundation which is closely affiliated to the German Greens. He studied German Literature, History, Philosophy and Political Science at Göttingen University. After earning his doctoral degree with a book on Immanuel Kant’s Philosophy of Law in 1984, he was member of the National Research Center on Literary Translation at Göttingen University from 1985 to 1994. Since then he is working at Heinrich Boell Foundation.



Discussion of the books Bioethics and The Horizon of Bioethics
27 February 2013


Bioethics, ed.Vojin Rakić, Rada Drezgić, Ivan Mladenović, Belgrade: Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory


The Horizon of Bioethics: Morality in the Age of the Technical Reproduction of Life, ed.Rada Drezgić, Željko Radinković, Predrag Krstić. Belgrade: Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory.

As part of the project “Bioethical Aspects: Morally Acceptable Within the Biotechnologically and Socially Possible”, the Center for the Study of Bioethics and Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory have undertaken the pioneering work of establishing referential readings in the field of bioethics. The texts in Bioethics were collected with the intention of being a “reader” that offers staple examples and enables rational discussion on a broad spectrum of topics that this field encompasses. The collection of domestic works The Horizon of Bioethics deals with the same themes – life, death, enhancement, the normal and aberrations, medical ethics, the consequences of biotechnical improvement etc. – providing insight into the character and range of opinions from several perspectives.


 

Dubravka Vejnović
The Concept of Race and Ethical Aspects of Human Population Studies
24 December 2012


Abstract
The goal of this lecture is to encourage consideration regarding the problem of dividing human population into races and to clarify whether the concept of race is justified from a biological and genetic aspect. Also, we will consider the justification of using racial qualification as a parameter in biomedical studies. How do safeguard science from “scientific racism”? Is it realistic to expect the emergence of genetic testing for forensic purposes that would enable the determination of “racial qualification” and ethnic qualification of persons suspected of crimes and what would be the consequences of the application of such methods? These are some of the questions that will be given specific attention. 


Biography
DubravkaVejnović was born in Belgrade. After graduating from the mathematical-natural sciences oriented high school, she takes up studies of molecular biology and physiology (applied genetics) at the University of Belgrade’s Biology School, while also doing humanitarian work and working as a lournalist. She currently works at the Center for Promotion of Science as a senior research assistant for the preparation of projects and program activities. She is a second year student of the School of Biology doctoral studies.


 

Voin Milevski
Should we Accept Abortion After Birth?

17 December 2012


Abstract
The text written by Francesca Minerva and Alberto Giubilini “After-birth-abortion: why should the baby live?” has, since its first publication this year, caused enormous interest and, in many cases, disapproval of the public. This is entirely understandable as the authors present several controversial claims. Firstly, they start from the fact that serious fetal abnormalities, as well as the risk for the woman’s physical and psychological health often lead to entirely valid causes for abortion. However, what if these circumstances (i.e. the ones that justify abortion) appear only after the baby is born? Can the arguments that are used to justify the killing of a fetus also be consistently applied in the case of killing a newborn? The authors claim that the reasons sufficient for the justification of abortion can also be sufficient to justify “after-birth abortion” – especially in light of the fact that the difference between the moral status of a fetus and a newborn is nonexistent. The goal of the lecture by Voin Milevski is to show that the text by Minerva and Giubilini contains a very interesting and original argumentation. Namely, when the arguments presented by these authors are entirely developed, they show that the praxis we apply is entirely inconsistent. Rather, our intuitions lead us to accept several practices (eg. abortion and euthanasia of highly sick children) - without accepting abortion after birth, although we can’t find any relevant moral reasons for this. Thus, it will be shown that abortion after birth is a consistent option, although it doesn’t have to be accepted.

Biography
Voin Milevski was born in 1982 in Belgrade. He works as a research assistant on the project “Dynamic Systems in Nature and Society: Philosophical and Empirical Aspects”, financed by the Ministry of Sciences of the Republic of Serbia (2011-2014). His areas of interest include bioethics, applied ethics, normative ethics and meta-ethics. He is an associate of the Center for the Study of Bioethics. He publishes articles dealing mainly with meta-ethics and applied ethics.



Rosamond Rhodes
Living Organ Donors:  Lessons about Autonomy
7 December 2012


Biography
Rosamond Rhodes, Ph.D., is Professor of Medical Education and Director of Bioethics Education at Mount Sinai School of Medicine where she oversees the medical ethics curriculum for students in all four years of medical school, for house staff in eleven residency programs, for graduate post-doctoral fellows in the biomedical sciences, and for students in the genetics counseling program. She directs a program of faculty medical ethics education and collaborates with faculty members on a variety of research projects. Dr. Rhodes serves as a member of Mount Sinai's Ethics Committee and IACUC. Dr. Rhodes is also Professor of Philosophy at The Graduate Center, CUNY.
Beyond the teaching setting, Dr. Rhodes serves as co-editor of the American Philosophical Association Newsletter on Philosophy and Medicine and on the editorial boards of the international journals Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics, Bioethics, and Clinical Ethics. She has published over 125 articles and chapters on a broad range of issues in bioethics including: professionalism, justice, the doctor-patient relationship, decisional capacity, surrogate decision making, research ethics, physician-assisted suicide, genetics, cloning, abortion, assisted reproduction, organ transplantation, psychiatry, and bioethics education. She also writes on issues in the history of moral and political philosophy.