NYMC adds master’s in medical ethics program

New York Medical College announced it will offer a master’s degree in medical ethics beginning in the fall, with classes initially offered in the evenings and online.

The master’s degree program and a certificate program will provide students with training that emphasizes clinical medical ethics, compassionate care, religious and cultural competence, ethical implications pertaining to emerging technologies and the different notions of justice that influence ideas of public health.

Ira Bedzow will serve as director of the program. Bedzow has a doctorate in religion from Emory University, a Master of Arts from the University of Chicago, a Master of Arts from Touro College”™s Graduate School of Jewish Studies and a Bachelor of Arts from Princeton University. He is an ordained Orthodox rabbi and the senior scholar at the Aspen Center for Social Values.

“This is an exciting time for New York Medical College and for health care at large,” Bedzow said in a press release announcing the launch of the program. “Students of our new Master of Science and Advance Certificate programs will be better doctors and more effective health care professionals and advocates. With a focus on clinical ethics, and with an option to concentrate in Jewish medical ethics, our programs are unique in every arena.”

The master’s program in medical ethics is targeted at medical students, health professional students and practicing health care providers, as well as rabbinical students who want to work in chaplaincy in a medical setting.