Recorded on 5 August 2021 for ICMDA Webinars.
Dr Peter Saunders chairs a webinar with Prof John Wyatt.
Conscientious objection as a right is enshrined in the laws of many countries and in professional medical guidelines, but has recently come under attack.
The concept of the conscience goes to the heart of what it means to act in a moral way, with integrity. There have been shocking historical examples of medical abuses after conscience has failed. The right helps preserve individuals' moral integrity, preserves the reputation of the medical profession, and safeguards against coercive state power.
John Wyatt is Emeritus Professor of Neonatal Paediatrics, University College London, a Senior Researcher at the Faraday Institute, Cambridge and President of the UK Christian Medical Fellowship.
He has a clinical background as a paediatrician caring for sick and premature infants and also a medical scientist researching into the prevention of brain injury in newborn babies.
He has always been interested in ethical dilemmas raised by advances in medical technology and has frequently engaged in public and professional consultations and debates from the perspective of the Christian faith.
His book Matters of Life and Death– human dilemmas in the light of the Christian faith has been translated into more than 10 languages. He and his wife Celia are longstanding members of All
Souls Church in London.
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