Health Care Ethics Minor

What is the Health Care Ethics Minor?

As a health care ethics minor, you will have the option to choose between two tracks: A Basic Track or the Global Track. Both tracks are designed to expose students to the complex and growing field of biomedical ethics.

The Basic Track comprises:

• One required course (THE 366: Christian Medical Ethics)
• Five electives
• An exit interview

The more rigorous Global Track requires you to take one of the following options:

• The Just Health Care in Developing Nations course (THE 368), which includes a two-week study abroad experience
• An independent study that includes designing a research project. This research project must be approved by a faculty member associated with the minor program and the Institute of Clinical Bioethics. The idea is to encourage the student to explore many complex ethical dilemmas on a global scale, especially as they pertain to underdeveloped countries. Topics of study include the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS on Sub-Saharan Africa, the ethics of human research in the developing world and the moral responsibility of developed countries to the health care needs of developing countries.

Ways to Study Health Care Ethics at Saint Joseph's University

Health care ethics is only available as a minor and complements many majors with the goal of health and community development like health studies, biology and childhood studies. Students seeking the health care ethics minor are required to complete six courses from at least three departments; no more than three courses from any one department may count for credit toward the minor. The prerequisite course is PHL 154: Moral Foundations, which focuses on the ways in which agents, actions and social practices are evaluated from the moral point of view.

What Can I Do With a Health Care Ethics Minor? 

The health care ethics minor will help you gain insights into the clinical side of the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries. You will study healthcare administration, education and research. With this skill set, students have gone on to pursue jobs like the following:

• Medical Practitioner
• Community Development Coordinator
• Mental Health Practitioner
• Health Services Manager
• Hospital Compliance Director
• Medical Ethicist

How Will Saint Joseph's University Prepare Me For a Career in Health Care?

More and more people are beginning to realize the importance and complexities of ethics in the clinical setting. Healthcare professionals are confronted daily with numerous complex ethical dilemmas that they may not be well-prepared to handle. As a student considering a career in healthcare, you will develop a close understanding of ethical principles and will learn how to argue positions on a wide range of moral issues related to health care.

In addition to the course work, minors are encouraged to attend the events sponsored by the Institute of Clinical Bioethics, especially the annual McCormick Lecture. Doing so will provide the opportunity to network with individuals attending the events and lectures who may be instrumental in helping you secure a job after graduation.