Sorcha Uí Chonnachtaigh

B.A. (Philsophy & Classical Civilisations), NUI,Galway
MSc. (Equality Studies), University College Dublin

Contact:
Tel: 353 91 495039
E-mail: s.nichonnachtaigh1nuigalway.ie
Room 312A, Regenerative Medicine Institute,
NCBES, NUI, Galway

Links:
Centre of Bioethical Research & Analysis (COBRA), Department of Philosophy)
Regenerative Medicine Institute (REMEDI)
Bioethics IrelandUK Network

Biography:

After completing her BA from National University of Ireland, Galway in 2003, Sorcha returned home to Dublin to take up a place in the taught masters programme in the Equality Studies Centre, UCD. This course was an invaluable step in her education because of its inter- and multi-disciplinary approach to research across a broad spectrum of political, social and ethical issues.

Sorcha completed a masters thesis entitled, “Social problems and punitive measures: capital punishment and the burden on African-American men” in 2004 and was awarded an MSc. Eq. St. in April 2005. While she enjoyed her time in UCD, Sorcha strangely missed the rainy West and returned in January 2005 to begin research for a PhD with the Centre for Bioethical Research and Analysis (COBRA) and the Regenerative Medicine Institute (REMEDI) in the area of bioethics. 

Current Research:

Ethical Considerations in Embryonic Stem Cell Research, in the Context of Ireland

The general aim of Sorcha’s research is to identify the ethical questions, which arise from scientific research on human embryos – for the purpose of developing regenerative medical therapies – in Ireland, and to identify the most ethically justifiable position on embryonic stem cell research.

In meeting this objective she must evaluate a diverse range of highly complex ethical issues including informed consent, the moral status of the human embryo, intellectual property rights and equitable access to potential stem cell treatments. The embryonic stem (ES) cell debate in Ireland is relatively young, but the particular history and recent changes of Irish society make the socio-cultural context of her research interesting both on a personal and political level.

Sorcha is currently in the final year of her PhD, and hopes to enter the grown up world of work very soon! 

Teaching Experience

Spring 2008: "Philosophical Approaches to Health Care" - 1 ^st year BSN (Gen. Nursing, Psych. Nursing & Midwifery), School of Nursing & Midwifery

Autumn 2007: “Business Ethics: Doing Ethics” - 4 ^th year BSc IT, Dept of IT

Autumn 2006: “Business Ethics: Theory and Practice” - 4 ^th year BSc in Information Technology, Dept of IT

Spring 2006: “The History of Modern Philosophy I” - 2 ^nd year BA Philosophy, Dept. of Philosophy

Autumn 2005: “Business Ethics” - 4 ^th year BSc in Information Technology, Dept. of IT

Sorcha has also delivered ethics lectures and workshops in the areas of Medicine, Biomechanical & Mechanical Engineering, Sports Medicine & Sports Physiotherapy, Regenerative Medicine, Biomedical Science and Palliative Care Nursing. 

Suggested Readings and Links:

Text Resources:
Dyson, Anthony & Harris, John (ed.s) (1990). Experiments on Embryos. London: Routledge.

Harris, John (ed.) (2001). Bioethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Holland, Alan, “Two weeks of my life are missing: A Discussion of the Status of the Human 'Pre-Embryo” in B. Almond & D. Hill (ed.s) Applied Philosophy, London: Routledge, 1991, pp. 299-311.

Irish Council for Bioethics (2008). Ethical, Scientific and Legal Issues Concerning Stem Cell Research. Dublin: Irish Council for Bioethics. Available to download in pdf format (for free) from their Publications page.

Jones, DA “The Human Embryo in the Christian Tradition: A Reconsideration” in Journal of Medical Ethics, Vol.31, December 2005, 710-714.

Lockwood, Michael, “When Does A Life Begin?” in Moral Dilemmas in Modern Medicine, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985: 9-31.

Singer, Peter. Ed. 1999. Bioethics: An Anthology. Oxford: Blackwell.

Singer, Peter & Kuhse, Helge. Ed.s. 1999. A Companion to Bioethics. Oxford: Blackwell. 

Web Resources:
There is a wealth of bioethics resources available from the COBRA website, and I would recommend checking them out for further information.  Below I have listed a few websites that are useful to me in my research.

The Irish Council for Bioethics
The Irish Council for Bioethics, founded in 2000, is the national advisory body for the government, which develops statements and policy proposals regarding bioethical issues that arise in Irish society.  Its proceedings and reports are all publicly available on the Council's website.

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics (UK)
The Nuffield Council on Bioethics was established to identify, examine and report on the ethical questions raised by recent advances in biological and medical research.  This is a link to one of the Council’s publications, Stem Cell Therapy: Ethical Issues, which evaluated the ethical issues surrounding stem cell research in the context of the UK.
http://www.nuffieldbioethics.org/go/ourwork/stemcells/publication_304.html

The National Institutes of Health (US)
The National Institutes of Health (US national medical research agency) website, which gives access to a wealth of resources including national policy documents, information documents and international news bulletins and articles on stem cell research.
http://stemcells.nih.gov/
~ This is a direct link to the NIH’s basic document on stem cells:
http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/basics3.asp

The American Journal of Bioethics Website & Blog
The American Journal of Bioethics itself requires a subscription, but the website has freely accesible news items and the editors' blog (with a liberal bias) has lots of interesting posts on stem cell research and more.

The Journal of Medical Ethics (JME), based in the UK, has free on-line access to selected articles.
http://jme.bmjjournals.com/

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