2022 Centre for Clinical Ethics (CCE) Conference – November 2nd, 9th, 16th and 30th | Canadian Catholic Bioethics Institute – Affiliated with the University of St. Michael's College in the University of Toronto

24th Annual Ethics Conference

Human Rights and Healthcare

Unity Health’s Centre for Clinical Ethics is pleased to be hosting our annual ethics conference as an online speaker series over four Wednesdays in November. This series is free. Registration is required. Please visit our website for more details https://ccethics.com/conference/

This year our focus is on Human Rights & Healthcare. This expansive topic has been brought to the fore by the pandemic’s exacerbation of issues of racism, colonialization, and structural inequities within healthcare. We will hear from leading speakers on topics such as what is a ‘right’, how to balance competing interests of individuals within the healthcare system, the concept of accommodation, why cultural safety is essential in healthcare, and the impact being uninsured in Ontario.

To register in advance for this webinar series click the link below

https://ca01web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FMROo_gZRYSaJIwXfJnN9w

Physicians will be eligible to receive one Section 1 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) credit as certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Links for providing feedback and registering for CPD credit will be available in the live session.

Please join us for one or more of our free, online lunch time sessions. See below for more details.

Date & Time	Wednesday, November 2 \| 12-1 DR. HAZEL MARKWELL HONOURARY LECTURE IN BIOETHICS
Topic	Tearing Down the Many Disability Barriers in Ontario’s Health Care System
Speaker	David Lepofsky CM, O. Ont, LLB, LL. M, LL.D. (Hon.), visiting professor of Disability Rights and Legal Education, Osgoode Hall Law School, Chair of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance.
Abstract	Ontario’s health care system has far too many disability barriers that impede patients with disabilities from fully using and benefitting from health care services to which they are entitled. The Ontario Government has pledged to enact a Health Care Accessibility Standard under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act to remove these barriers. In this presentation, I will review these health care disability barriers and talk about what needs to be done to fix this situation.

Date & Time	Wednesday, November 9 \| 12-1
Topic	What are rights, anyway? An ethical and legal perspective on rights in healthcare
Speaker	Xavier Symons, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University
Speaker	Melanie de Wit, JD, MPH, Chief Legal Officer, Unity Health Toronto, Adjunct Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Abstract	The language of rights is often used by people who are advocating for themselves. Patients and their families frequently assert their “right” to particular treatment, accommodation, visitation, and information. Sometimes fulfilling these expectations detracts from what may be considered the rights of others, namely healthcare workers or other patients. How can we best navigate conflicting expectations regarding entitlements? We will explore how legal and moral concepts of rights can help us to balance competing interests within healthcare, while acknowledging the limitations of each.

Date & Time	Wednesday, November 16 \| 12-1
General Topic	Assessing and interrupting anti-Indigenous racism in health services. Title forthcoming.
Speaker	Janet Smylie, MD, FCFP, MPH, Director of the Well Living House and Strategic Advisor Indigenous Wellbeing, Reconciliation, and Partnerships at Unity Health Toronto; Professor, University of Toronto.
Abstract	Abstract forthcoming.

Date & Time	Wednesday, November 30\| 12-1
Topic	“Immigration Status and Health – the Impact of being Uninsured in Ontario”?
Speaker Speaker	Michaela Beder, MD, FRCPC, Psychiatrist, St. Michael’s Hospital; Director of Mental Health and Substance Use Care, Inner City Health Associates; Assistant Professor, University of Toronto Hudson Alexander, JD, LLM, PhD, Professor and Associate Dean, Lincoln Alexander School of Law. Toronto Metropolitan University.
Abstract	This talk will explore the concept of the right to health for persons who are uninsured. In particular, the clinical and legal dimensions of access to healthcare for persons lacking immigration status such as undocumented migrants will be discussed.