Media

Should miscarried foetuses less than 24 weeks old be treated as ‘medical waste’? How should ‘unclaimed’ dead bodies be handled by hospitals? Do biomedical and genomic researchers have an obligation to share the benefits of their research with the patients and research subjects who made possible such research in the first place?

Recent controversies have arisen over the insistence of hospitals in treating miscarried foetuses of less than 24 weeks as ‘medical waste’, and to be disposed of as such. But some parents disagree, and contend that such remains are no different from the bodies of other deceased children, and that they should be given the right to claim the foetuses for a ‘proper’ burial or cremation as with the body of any other deceased person on the grounds of human dignity and respect for religious convictions.

The controversy will be discussed in the opening session (9:30am to 12:30pm, November 6, Tuesday) of a two-day conference on medical and legal issues. Queries to be addressed at the openng session also include "What should the hospital authorities in Hong Kong do with dead bodies which are not collected by anyone? What does the law say (or does not say), and what is the practice?"  ​

Other medical and legal issues for discussion
What are the key intellectual property issues for works generated by artificial intelligence? [Covered in Session 2 (2:00pm to 4:50pm, November 6, 2018)]

Should the benefits arising from medical or genomic research be shared with those who provided the relevant DNA, blood or tissue samples? [Covered in Session 3 (9:30am to 12:20pm, November 7, 2018)]

Distinguished doctors, lawyers, scholars and researchers will speak on the issues above and other important issues including (1) biobank governance and regulation, (2) implications of the European Union General Data Protection Regulation for clinical care and medical research, (3) the grant of patents in relation to human body parts and materials derived from the human body, (4) access to and benefit sharing of biological materials and related data, and (5) regenerative medicine in an upcoming conference of the Centre for Medical Ethics & Law of the University of Hong Kong. Details of the conference are as follows:

Date & Time:
November 6, 2018 (Tuesday)
Time:
Session 1: 9:30am to 12:30pm
Session 2: 2:00pm to 4:50pm

November 7, 2018 (Wednesday)
Session 3: 9:30am to 12:20pm

Venue: 11/F, Cheng Yu Tung Tower, Centennial Campus, the University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong

Programme and abstracts: Please click here.

Journalists are invited to cover the event. Please contact us to make a reservation for the session(s) that you would like to attend.

Reservation and media enquiries:
Ms. Jane Or, Centre for Medical Ethics & Law, HKU (telephone number: 3917 4345; email: janeytor@hku.hk).