PHCG 3223 The Ethics of Global Public Health and the Common Good
Global public health is both an urgent good and a needed right that is integral to a vision of just society. The course studies, first, the ethical issues raised by global public health (from epidemics and pandemics to poverty and underdevelopment); second, the ethical approaches to address them (from rights to the common good); third, concrete solutions and praxes. International examples from Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas help to identify the ethical agenda and to implement it. The course's readings, analyses, and proposals engage: health sciences, anthropology, social sciences, philosophical and theological bioethical discourses, and social doctrine by considering, among others, Catholic and Protestant contributions.
Course overview
- Department
- Schiller Institute
- School
- Boston College
- Credits
- 3
- Level
- Undergraduate
- Offered
- Periodically in the Spring
Course evaluations
- Course rating
- 4.02 / 5 · Very Good
- Instructor rating
- 4.31 / 5 · Very Good
- Terms evaluated
- 4
| Term | Instructor | Course overall | Instructor overall | Well organized | Clear learning objectives | Intellectually challenging | Helpful assignments | Applicable beyond course | Attendance necessary | Weekly effort | Responses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2026 | Andrea Vicini | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 1–3 hrs/week | 41 of 48 |
| Spring 2025 | Andrea Vicini | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 1–3 hrs/week | 42 of 48 |
| Spring 2024 | Andrea Vicini | 3.9 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 1–3 hrs/week | 40 of 47 |
| Spring 2023 | Andrea Vicini | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 1–3 hrs/week | 37 of 47 |