Holocaust Genocide and Contemporary Bioethics Program
Promoting education, scholarship and community engagement on the lessons of the Holocaust for health care and society.
2019 Program
Medicine and Morality in Times of War
Nearly 80 years after German
physicians and other health professionals carried out some of the most
heinous Nazi war crimes, health professionals today continue to practice
during times of war and political conflict. While some work on behalf
on authoritarian dictatorial governments to inflict harm, many others
work to protect human rights and to treat soldiers and civilians with
dignity and respect, even in the most extreme conditions imaginable.
These latter health professionals – whether they recognize it or not –
have absorbed critical lessons from the Holocaust about the necessary
roles of health professionals in wartime. Featured Speakers:
The 2019 Holocaust Genocide and
Contemporary Bioethics (HGCB) program will pay homage to the past while
discussing important ethical considerations for health professionals and
communities today. How did our core ethical principles of justice,
autonomy, beneficence, and non-maleficence grow out of the legacy of
health professional involvement in the Holocaust? What is the role of
health professionals in human rights law and the international laws of
war that arose following World War II? And how should our ethical
principles apply today in situations of mass casualties, inadequate
facilities, documented human rights violations and scarce supplies? The
2019 HGCB program will address head-on the many ethical challenges faced
by health professionals working during times of war and political
conflict, including the ethical challenges faced by health professionals
and the larger society in meeting the medical needs of refugees, asylum
seekers and other displaced persons.
Featured Speakers:
Len Rubenstein, JD, from
Johns Hopkins University, is the former Executive Director and
President of Physicians for Human Rights, an organization that carries
out forensic documentation of war crimes and advocates for the
protection of health workers in war zones. Professor Rubenstein has
broad knowledge about the origins of human rights laws and the laws of
war that arose out of the experiences in WWII.
Zaher Sahloul, MD, is the immediate past president of the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS),
a humanitarian and advocacy organization that provides medical relief to Syrians and Syrian refugees. Dr. Sahloul is the founder of the American Relief Coalition for Syria, a coalition of 14 US-based
humanitarian organizations working in Syria. He also is a critical care specialist at Christ Advocate Medical Center in Chicago, and a former medical school classmate of Bashar al-Assad.
a humanitarian and advocacy organization that provides medical relief to Syrians and Syrian refugees. Dr. Sahloul is the founder of the American Relief Coalition for Syria, a coalition of 14 US-based
humanitarian organizations working in Syria. He also is a critical care specialist at Christ Advocate Medical Center in Chicago, and a former medical school classmate of Bashar al-Assad.
Read an article about the program in CU Anschutz Today.
Archive:
- 2018 Program; Echoes of the Holocaust: Cultivating Compassion in 21st Century Healers
- 2017 Program; Commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Nuremberg Doctors' Trial
- 2016 Inaugural Program; featuring Art Caplan, PhD
Supporters
This year's program is generously supported by the MB Glassman Foundation and JEWISHcolorado.
Thank you to our founding sponsor, the William S. Silvers, MD Endowment.
There are several ways to get involved in our 2019 programming:
- Donate to the William S. Silvers, MD, Holocaust Genocide Contemporary Bioethics Program Fund
to support current programming and ensure the future of this program. - Join our Planning Committee to help develop future events - contact Meleah Himber at (303) 724-8332 for more information.
- Become a Sponsor for our 2019 Program.
For information about donations, contact Michael Tortoro at (303) 724-7618 in the CU Office of Advancement.