Michael Fuchs National ethics councils - Deutscher Ethikrat

Michael Fuchs National ethics councils. Their backgrounds, functions and modes of operation compared
exercise of the Health Council and of the Council for Public Health and Health Care
(Raad voor de Volksgezondheid en Zorg, RVZ), the results of which were presented for
the first time in May 2003, is intended to provide further early warning of ethical issues.
The advantages and disadvantages of the Dutch approach have been discussed
in the past at Council of Europe meetings and, most recently, in the hearing of the
Commission of Inquiry of the 14th Electoral Term of the Lower House of the German
Parliament (Deutscher Bundestag) on the Law and Ethics of Modern Medicine held
on 19 November 2001.
Website
Gezondheidsraad: http://www.gr.nl
Bibliography
Borst-Eilers, E. (1994). Collaboration Between Local (Hospital) Committees and a National Committee.
In: Council of Europe (ed.). Standing Conference of European Ethics Committees. Proceedings, Stockholm
8 – 9 April 1994: 66 – 70.
Ministry of Welfare, Health and Cultural Affairs (1991). Medical Practice with Regard to Euthanasia and
Related Medical Decisions in the Netherlands: Results of an Inquiry and the Government View [Remmelink
Commission Report].
Ter Meulen, R. (2001). Nationale Ethik-Kommissionen und Ethik-Beiräte in den Niederlanden. In: Enquete-
Kommission “Recht und Ethik der modernen Medizin“ (14. Deutscher Bundestag). Stellungnahmen von
Vertreterinnen und Vertretern europäischer Ethikkommissionen zur Öffentlichen Anhörung “Europäischer
Diskurs zu ethischen Fragen der modernen Medizin” vom 19. November 2001. Available online at:
http://www.bundestag.de/parlament/kommissionen/archiv/medi/medi_di_stell/Meulen_dt.pdf
Van Eijndhoven, J.; van Est, R. (2000). The Choice of Participatory TA Methods. In: European Participatory
Technology Assessment (EUROPTA). Participatory Methods in Technology Assessment and Technology
Decision-Making: 112 – 134. Available online at: http://www.tekno.dk/pdf/projekter/europta_Report.pdf
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2. Scandinavia and the British Isles
Sweden
The Swedish National Council on Medical Ethics (Statens Medicinsk-Etiska Råd,
SMER) was established in 1985, and is thus one of the oldest bodies of its kind. It
differs from equivalent institutions in other countries by the inclusion of a large
number of politicians. Of its 19 members, seven represent the political parties in Parliament,
while 12 experts are drawn from the fields of philosophy, the Church, the
arts, law, organizations of the disabled, the Swedish Medical Association, the nurses’
association and other groups.
It is common in Swedish parliamentary life for expert commissions to be consulted
in the legislative process. During the 1980s, commissions were appointed to
consider ethical matters such as the criterion of brain death, genetic integrity, reproductive
technologies and the rights of unborn children. The SMER has now been assigned
the function of subjecting the proposals and drafts of the relevant expert
commissions to ethical review as a part of the process of legislative preparation. This
includes the expression of opinions by social groups and other interests. The role of
the Council is considered to be to act as an interface between the world of science and
the political decision-makers.
The Swedish Council, too, was one of the first bodies of its kind in the world to
have taken up the subject of priorities in healthcare. This issue was raised by the
politician members of the Council. In the last two years, the principal motivations for
its published Opinions have been the transposition of European directives into
national law and the forthcoming ratification of Council of Europe protocols.
Website
SMER: http://www.smer.gov.se
Bibliography
Frank, M. (1994). The Role of the Parliamentarian in Ethics Committees. In: Council of Europe (ed.). Standing
Conference of European Ethics Committees. Proceedings, Stockholm 8 – 9 April 1994: 37 – 39.
Könberg, B. (1994). Introduction. In: Council of Europe (ed.). Standing Conference of European Ethics
Committees. Proceedings, Stockholm 8 – 9 April 1994: 7 – 8.
SMER (2002). Statement of Opinion on Embryonic Stem Cell Research (17.01.2002).
Available online at: http://www.smer.gov.se/index.htm?lang=en&index=0&url=intro.html
SMER (2002). Draft Additional Protocol to the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine, on Biomedical
Research (25.03.2002).
Available online at: http://www.smer.gov.se/index.htm?lang=en&index=0&url=intro.html
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