History

The Department of Medical Ethics and History Of Medicine was founded in December 2004 by Prof. Dr. Nesrin Çobanoğlu.

With the latest development in medicine and the structure of society, “Medical Ethics and Code of Conduct” has gained universal value. The social pressure caused by “Medical responsibility” and the social change leading to the increase in accusations of “malpractice”, has necessitated the cognition of “value concerns in medicine”, and the learning of “rules and principles” concerning the medicine practice in order to protect doctors and health facilities by avoiding faults. The traditions and rules the doctor has to follow in the doctor-patient relationship constitute the Medical Code of Conduct aspect of the process. The value concerns which present themselves during the doctor-patient relationship is the issue for the Medical Ethics field.

In addition to the aspects stated above, another aspect should be taken under consideration highlighting “ethics”. The aspect that is directly caused by the rapid increase of knowledge and skills in medicine and medical technology constantly pushing “medicine” institutions forward is the actual increase of the potential legal and moral problems difficult to understand, generating from medical practice with no known answers yet. These new problems concerning medicine itself as well as the results of medical practice, has required a new approach to the subject beyond “Code of Conduct”. The normative problems constituted with these new developments require solutions which have not been written in regulations and thus present a professional value argument. The more the increase in social difference or development, the more the increase in the number of normative problems and their contradictions. The searxch for solutions to these normative problems is a kind of ethical study. “The Ethical thought process” not only deals with unresolved problems but also reevaluates and interprets previously answered and resolved problems, presenting new solutions. So when the word “ethics” is used in a broad aspect, the meaning also covers “Code of Cnduct” The value themes belonging to medicine transform form “responsibility” to “value argument” all over the world. Code of conduct retains its importance as being the “knowledge of professional responsibility” all doctors should know while discussing the value issues and problems of medicine has caused “medical ethics” to be highlighted covering also the “code of conduct”. The social and medical dynamism pushes us academically form code of conduct to ethics; so rules of code of conduct and law should be taught to doctors meticulously and should be evaluated in terms of ethics.  Apart form solving problems caused by the development in medicine, regulations of present medical practice should be known and studied in the field of ethics.

The medical history education gives the student the understanding of continuosness in human thought throughout its history. This knowledge of medicine from past to present helps the student understand its evolution and brings sensitivity to its honour.