About Division of Philosophy of Medicine and Bioethics

The Division of Philosophy of Medicine and Bioethics was founded in 2005 on the basis of a unit of the same name, which existed between the year 2000 and 2005 and was headed by Professor Michał Musielak, PhD, who continued in this function until 2018. Since then, the head of the Division has been Associate Professor Ewa Baum, PhD.

Within its research programme, the division has been following in the footsteps of the medical philosophy and ethics practiced in the Poznan milieu during the Interbellum (Prof. Adam Wrzosek and Kazimierz Filip Wize, PhD). The division’s main focus is on the emergence of philosophical and ethical problems caused by the development of contemporary biomedicine and health protection. The faculty’s international connections have led to joint research and publishing. Furthermore, the staff is involved in teaching ethics, bioethics and deontology, as well as the history of philosophy and of medical philosophy and ethics at all the departments of the Poznan University of Medical Sciences, in addition to programmes in English.

Our main research interests include issues related to the expansive advancement of biomedicine, the ethical contexts and sociocultural determinants implied by these developments, as well as the associated linguistics. In particular, our focus is on:

Social and moral consequences of introducing new methods and therapeutic procedures in regenerative medicine;
Quality of life in patients undergoing dialysis;
Medical, social and cultural aspects of peritoneal dialysis and haemodialysis;
Moral assessment determinants of the problem of obtaining and using stem cells, and of reprogenetic methods in different cultural circles (the role of sociocultural factors in shaping outlooks on life);
Issues related to the development of moral attitudes and the impact of biological, economic, political and cultural factors on this process
The concept of organ transplants from a social perspective, and the models and legal regulations of organ transplantation in Poland and across the world;
Human organ trafficking from the perspective of organ donors and recipients;
Social contexts of personalized medicine;
Genetic testing in the context of the right to ignorance and the duty to know;
The role and significance of deontological codes in the medical professions;
Contemporary reproductive medicine;
Eugenic mechanisms in antiutopian literature;

If you are interested in working with us in the above-mentioned research areas or on other ethical and bioethical issues, please contact us at ebaum@ump.edu.pl or agzok@ump.edu.pl

Faculty:

Head of Division of Philosophy of Medicine and Bioethics

Associate Professor, Ewa Baum, PhD

Ewa Baum is interested in the advancement of modern biomedicine and its accompanying ethical contexts. She has authored the books Stem Cells as a Bioethical Problem of Modern Medicine and Quality of life in patients undergoing renal replacement therapy. She has also authored or co-authored (with M. Musielak and K. Pawlaczyk) numerous papers on the ethical problems of medical advancement, including: Utopian Trends in Modern Bioethics. Ethical Aspects of Research on and Using Stem Cells (Bull. Trans. Univ. Brasov New Ser. Ser. B2 2005: 12[47] p. 221-224); Who Is Right about Legalization of Organ Trade? (Prz. Filoz. Nowa Seria, 2012: R. 21, No. 2[82], p. 141-150); and Levels of Hepatocyte Growth Factor in Serum Correlate with Quality of life in Haemodialysis Patients (Int. J. Clin. Exp. Pathol. 2015: Vol. 8, No. 10, p. 13477-13482).

Ewa Baum is involved in research projects in the fields of ethics, bioethics and medical deontology. The research areas which are of particular interest to her include: the sociocultural consequences of the advancement of modern transplantation medicine, the ethical contexts of the advancement of genetics and genetic counselling, the sociocultural and legislative aspects of reproductive medicine, and the quality of life of chronically ill patients and their subjective expectations regarding medical, psychological and social assistance.

Assistant Professor, Agnieszka Żok, PhD

Agnieszka Żok is a cultural expert. She has a PhD in health sciences and is an assistant professor at the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities, Poznan University of Medical Sciences (PUMS). A member of the Local Ethical Committee for Animal Experiments and co-organizer of the Conference on Animal Practices in the 21^st Century. Her research interests revolve around contemporary bioethical dilemmas. She has authored research papers on moral dilemmas regarding the development of reprogenetics in terms of transhumanistic thought and is especially involved in the discussion on embryo modification techniques.

The second branch of Żok’s research activity concerns philosophical posthumanism and relations between human, non-human animals and the environment. She is engaged in integrating these issues into cultural reflection. She is currently working on her habilitation dissertation.

Żok gives lectures in most programmes at PUMS, mainly in the field of bioethics. She is the author of 50 research publications and has managed 3 research grants.

Agniszka Żok spends her free time on the mat practicing Vinyasa and Ashtanga Yoga.

Lecturer

Izabela Rzymska, PhD

Izabela Rzymska majored in philosophy at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan. Since 2005, she has been working at the Poznan University of Medical Sciences. In 2010, she received her doctoral degree based on the dissertation Effect of education on moral competence among midwifery students concerning reproductive medicine. The current focus of her interest is on the following fields: assisted human reproduction; procreation vs reproduction; and moral competence of potential parents with regard to ways of becoming parents: by natural fertilization or by any type of medical biotechnology.