Conceptualizing Policy in Value Sensitive Design

The value sensitive design (VSD) approach to designing emerging technologies for human values is taken as the object of study in this chapter. VSD has traditionally been conceptualized as another type of technology or instrumentally as a tool. The various parts of VSD's principled approach would then aim to discern the various policy requirements that any given technological artifact under consideration would implicate. Yet, little to no consideration has been given to how laws, policies, and social norms engage within VSD practices, similarly, how the interactive nature of the VSD approach can, in turn, influence those directives. This is exacerbated when considering machine ethics policy that has global consequences outside their development spheres. This chapter begins with the VSD approach and aims to determine how policies come to influence how values can be managed within VSD practices. It shows that the interactional nature of VSD permits and encourages existing policies to be integrated early on and throughout the design process.

End-of-Life: Patientinnen und Patienten rechtzeitig einbinden

<b>Background:</b> Decisions to limit treatment (DLTs) are important to protect patients from overtreatment but constitute one of the most ethically challenging situations in oncology practice. In the Ethics Policy for Advance Care Planning and Limiting Treatment study (EPAL), we examined how often DLT preceded a patient’s death and how early they were determined before (T1) and after (T2) the implementation of an intrainstitutional ethics policy on DLT. <b>Methods:</b> This prospective quantitative study recruited 1.134 patients with haematological/oncological neoplasia in a period of 2×6 months at the University Hospital of Munich, Germany. Information on admissions, discharges, diagnosis, age, DLT, date and place of death, and time span between the initial determination of a DLT and the death of a patient was recorded using a standardised form. <b>Results</b>: Overall, for 21% (n = 236) of the 1.134 patients, a DLT was made. After implementation of the policy, the proportion decreased (26% T1/16% T2). However, the decisions were more comprehensive, including more often the combination of ‹Do not resuscitate› and ‹no intense care unit› (44% T1/64% T2). The median time between the determination of a DLT and the patient’s death was similarly short with 6 days at a regular ward (each T1/T2) and 10.5/9 (T1/T2) days at a palliative care unit. For patients with solid tumours, the DLTs were made earlier at both regular and palliative care units than for the deceased with haematological neoplasia. <b>Conclusion:</b> Our results show that an ethics policy on DLT could sensitise for treatment limitations in terms of frequency and extension but had no significant impact on timing of DLT. Since patients with haematological malignancies tend to undergo intensive therapy more often during their last days than patients with solid tumours, special attention needs to be paid to this group. To support timely discussions, we recommend the concept of advance care planning.

Virtue, Objectivity, and the Character of the Education Researcher

In his 1993 book, Hare asks “What Makes a Good Teacher?” In this paper we ask, “What makes a good education researcher?” We begin our discussion with Richard Rudner's classic 1953 essay, The Scientist Qua Scientist Makes Value Judgments, which confronted science with the internal subjectivity it had long ignored. Rudner's bold claim that scientists do make value judgments as scientists called attention to the very foundations of scientific conduct. In an era of institutional research ethics, like the Tri-Council’s ethics policy, Rudner's call for an approach to these value judgments is even more relevant. The contemporary education researcher primarily engages with ethics procedurally, which provides a certain level of consistency and objectivity. This approach has its roots in principle-based theories of ethics that have long been dominant in Western universities. We argue that calls, like Rudner's, for an objective science of ethics, are at the root of this dominant institutional approach. This paper critiques the suitability of such principle-based ethics for solving Rudner's concerns, and posits that educational research ethics is better understood as a matter of character and virtue. We argue that, much like the ethical teacher, the ethical education researcher is a certain kind of person.

Late decisions about treatment limitation in patients with cancer: empirical analysis of end-of-life practices in a haematology and oncology unit at a German university hospital

BackgroundDecisions to limit treatment (DLTs) are important to protect patients from overtreatment but constitute one of the most ethically challenging situations in oncology practice. In the Ethics Policy for Advance Care Planning and Limiting Treatment study (EPAL), we examined how often DLT preceded a patient’s death and how early they were determined before (T1) and after (T2) the implementation of an intrainstitutional ethics policy on DLT.MethodsThis prospective quantitative study recruited 1.134 patients with haematological/oncological neoplasia in a period of 2×6 months at the University Hospital of Munich, Germany. Information on admissions, discharges, diagnosis, age, DLT, date and place of death, and time span between the initial determination of a DLT and the death of a patient was recorded using a standardised form.ResultsOverall, for 21% (n=236) of the 1.134 patients, a DLT was made. After implementation of the policy, the proportion decreased (26% T1/16% T2). However, the decisions were more comprehensive, including more often the combination of ‘Do not resuscitate’ and ‘no intense care unit’ (44% T1/64% T2). The median time between the determination of a DLT and the patient’s death was similarly short with 6 days at a regular ward (each T1/T2) and 10.5/9 (T1/T2) days at a palliative care unit. For patients with solid tumours, the DLTs were made earlier at both regular and palliative care units than for the deceased with haematological neoplasia.ConclusionOur results show that an ethics policy on DLT could sensitise for treatment limitations in terms of frequency and extension but had no significant impact on timing of DLT. Since patients with haematological malignancies tend to undergo intensive therapy more often during their last days than patients with solid tumours, special attention needs to be paid to this group. To support timely discussions, we recommend the concept of advance care planning.

Social ethics policy will test multinationals

Headline INTERNATIONAL: Ethics policy will test corporates

Ethical Policy in Higher Education School of Law: Case of Universitas Negeri Semarang

This study is intended to analyze and describe the urgency of campus life ethics policy at the Faculty of Law and how ethical policy constraints campus life at the Faculty of Law. The study also aims to find obstacles in implementing the Campus Life Ethics Policy at the Faculty of Law. The concepts and theories in this study are the basic concepts of ethics and policy theory, policy implementation, legislative hierarchy, ethics, and legal system theory according to Lawrence Friedman. This type of research is a sociological juridical study with a qualitative research approach. Sources of research data come from primary data (interviews) and secondary data (literature studies and documentation). The data collection technique of this study used observation, interviews, and study of documents. This study found and revealed that there are two factors (internal and external) affected to student behaviors. Internal factors include character of students themselves, student habits, apathetic cultural factors inherent in students, and external factors include incomplete facilities, lack of in-depth socialization, lack of supervision and strict enforcement as well as interference from outside UNNES. The study concluded that the Campus Life Ethics at the Faculty of Law UNNES is able to be realized with in-depth socialization of the Regulations Chancellor Number 44 of 2018 is accompanied by supervision and strict enforcement of sanctions.

Perwujudan Dan Implementasi Etika Dalam Pelayanan Publik Di Era Otonomi Daerah

Public services both at the central and regional levels still do not apply Ethical values due todiverse understanding, not supported by adequate policies, contrary to local cultural values, and nonbinding.For this reason, the government needs to establish a policy on public service ethics in anintegrated and more operational manner that is able to create an understanding of central and regionalgovernment officials regarding the form of Public Service Ethics policy and applies to officials directlyrelated to the community and does not apply to officials who are not directly related to society. Thegovernment needs to develop and socialize a strategy for developing operational and integrated PublicService Ethics that accommodates the content of local culture and involves all existing public servicestakeholders, both in government offices and in private institutions.