Lunchtime Lecture: Jewish ethics as a guide to medicine 2021

Join us online with Dr Bernard Tuch who will discuss key ethical issues in the modern practice of medicine, and will take us through the means by which Jewish medical ethics can assist with the decision-making process.

Some of the most difficult decisions made at the front line of medicine concern when life is said to begin and when it can be said to have ended. Stem cells are increasingly being used for therapeutic purposes in regenerative medicine, and genetic testing - especially before marriage - is becoming increasingly prevalent in our community. What are some of the ethical concerns that people might have with these practices, and to what extent are they informed by a knowledge of Jewish medical ethics?

Dr Bernard Tuch is a consultant endocrinologist and a practising Orthodox Jew. He is also a Professor of Medicine at the University of Sydney and Monash University, and Chairman of the NSW Stem Cell Network. In 2018, he delivered a 10-week course on Jewish Medical Ethics as part of the Melton Program. Dr Tuch is a Director of the Australian Foundation for Diabetes Research, which is working with an Israeli company to deliver insulin-producing cells as a therapy for type 1 diabetes. He uses the Orthodox Jewish perspective on medical ethics to help guide him in his practice of medicine.