Health is a core human concern, and decisions about how it is delivered, funded and improved affect all of us. Law is involved from the level of individual clinical encounters all the way through to international efforts to manage global health, and the way it does so is hotly contested, with strong ethical and human rights dimensions to health law debates.
This course will examine the various ways that law interacts with health and medicine, and the role of ethics in shaping these interactions. It takes a multidisciplinary approach in considering both what the law is, and what it should be, as well as its role as a determinant of health. Topics covered include: regulation of health practitioners; law at the beginning and end of life; mental health and disability law; public health law; governance of human research; and regulation of emerging technologies, among others.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Critically reflect on the impact of health law issues in the Australian context for healthcare, health policy and society.
- Synthesise and apply bioethical and human rights principles to propose solutions to legal problems arising in medical and health contexts.
- Interpret and evaluate the normative interaction of health law with the principles of bioethics and human rights, drawing on multidisciplinary approaches as appropriate.
- Plan and execute a research project on complex health law and bioethics issues.
Other Information
Students studying the Master of Culture Heritage and Medicine and Master of Culture Heritage and Medicine (Advanced) will need to contact enquiries.law@anu.edu.au to request a permission code to enrol.
Indicative Assessment
- The proposed means of assessment for this course will provide students with at least two pieces of assessment, including one piece during the teaching period. More information about the means of assessment, including the relationship between the assessment and the learning outcomes of the course, will be available in the class summary and on the course WATTLE page. (100) [LO 1,2,3,4]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
Classes offered in non-standard sessions will be taught semi-intensively with compulsory contact hours of approximately 26 hours of face to face teaching. The course will also require advanced preparation through assigned readings. In total, it is anticipated that the hours required for completion of this course (class preparation, teaching and completion of assessment) will not exceed 120 hours.
Classes offered during semester periods are expected to have three contact hours per week. Students are generally expected to devote at least 10 hours overall per week to this course. In total, it is anticipated that the hours required for completion of this course (class preparation, teaching and completion of assessment) will not exceed 120 hours.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Students must rely on the approved Class Summary which will be posted to the Programs and Courses site approximately two weeks prior to the commencement of the course. Alternatively, this information will be published in the Program course list when finalised.
Preliminary Reading
Students must rely on the approved Class Summary which will be posted to the Programs and Courses site approximately two weeks prior to the commencement of the course. Alternatively, this information will be published in the Program course list when finalised.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 34
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
