Indian Journal of Medical Ethics

The invasion of Iraq is expected to kill several hundred thousand people both directly and through the breakdown of an already enfeebled health system. The editorial points to the injustice of spending billions of dollars on war while depriving essential health programmes of funds. An article in our January issue supporting the use of electroconvulsive therapy without anaesthesia has drawn a sharp response. We carry both points of view for our readers and welcome discussion to further a debate on this important subject. A report on the Ethics and Health Unit of the WHO, established in October 2002, describes the challenges it faces and its plans for the future. A researcher discusses the barriers posed by language and culture when ensuring informed consent in survey research. Genetic technology is opening up a host of new possibilities for diagnosis and treatment but the cost of these new technologies pose their own ethical dilemmas. A doctor and a health economist discuss the subject from their different perspectives.

South Asia Medical Ethics on-line
The South Asian Medical Ethics e-group is co-ordinated by members of the Bioethics Group of the Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan, and the Forum for Medical Ethics Society, Mumbai, India. SAME was set up following the development of a number of informal contacts across the sub-continent. It is meant to respond to the need to promote discussion on issues in medical ethics in this part of the world, to exchange ideas, provoke meaningful debate, and strengthen valuable relationships between the people of our countries. We hope that you will find this discussion meaningful, contribute with your own experiences, press reports and comments on issues in medical ethics, and forward this invitation to friends and colleagues in this region.