Tag: cosmetic surgery

What social and ethical challenges are presented by female cosmetic genital surgery?

bbag-blog-image-logoFemale Cosmetic Genital Surgery: Social and Ethical Considerations

Event Flyer

In recent years, there has been an upsurge in plastic surgery for women who wish to alter the look and feel of their genitalia. The women who undergo these procedures claim they are empowering, but critics worry such surgeries pathologize normal genital appearance. Several surgeons are also using social media to document these surgeries, granting them greater visibility and legitimacy. This talk will discuss the latest innovations in female cosmetic genital surgery, the history behind the medical community’s involvement in defining women’s sexuality, and the ethical and social challenges these surgeries present.

March 13 calendar iconJoin us for Dr. Stahl’s lecture on Wednesday, March 13, 2019 from noon until 1 pm in person or online.

Dr. Devan Stahl is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Ethics in the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences at Michigan State University. She received her Ph.D. in Health Care Ethics from St. Louis University. Dr. Stahl teaches medical students and residents in the College of Human Medicine and performs ethics consultation services at hospitals in Lansing, Michigan. Her research interests include medicine and the visual arts, theological bioethics, and disability studies. Dr. Stahl’s recent book, Imaging and Imagining Illness: Becoming Whole in a Broken Body, examines the power of medical images and their impact on patients and the wider culture.

In person: This lecture will take place in C102 Patenge Room in East Fee Hall on MSU’s East Lansing campus. Feel free to bring your lunch! Beverages and light snacks will be provided.

Online: Here are some instructions for your first time joining the webinar, or if you have attended or viewed them before, go to the meeting!

Can’t make it? All webinars are recorded! Visit our archive of recorded lectures. To receive reminders before each webinar, please subscribe to our mailing list.

Announcing the Spring 2019 Bioethics Brownbag & Webinar Series

bbag-icon-decIt’s almost time for the 2018-2019 Bioethics Brownbag & Webinar Series to resume! This spring we’ll hear from Center for Ethics faculty on the topics of aging and extending the human lifespan, as well as the social and ethical considerations of female cosmetic genital surgery. Please join us in person, or join the webinar livestream from any location. Visit the series webpage for more information.

Spring 2019 Series Flyer

February 13 calendar iconShould We Be Reaching for Immortality?
Wednesday, February 13, 2019

So long as life is good, who wouldn’t want to live as long as possible? The question turns out to be more complicated than it sounds.

Tom Tomlinson, PhD, is a Professor in the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences and the Department of Philosophy at Michigan State University.

March 13 calendar iconFemale Cosmetic Genital Surgery: Social and Ethical Considerations
Wednesday, March 13, 2019

This talk will discuss the latest innovations in female cosmetic genital surgery, the history behind the medical community’s involvement in defining women’s sexuality, and the ethical and social challenges these surgeries present.

Devan Stahl, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences and the Department of Pediatrics and Human Development at Michigan State University.

In person: These lectures will take place from 12:00-1:00 PM in C102 (Patenge Room) East Fee Hall on MSU’s East Lansing campus. Feel free to bring your lunch! Beverages and light snacks will be provided.

Online: Here are some instructions for your first time joining the webinar, or if you have attended or viewed them before, go to the meeting!

Can’t make it? Every lecture is recorded and posted for viewing in our archive. If you’d like to receive a reminder before each lecture, please subscribe to our mailing list.

Would you ever consent to have your medical procedure broadcast on social media?

No Easy Answers in Bioethics logoEpisode 10 of No Easy Answers in Bioethics is now available! This episode features Dr. Devan Stahl, Assistant Professor in the Center for Ethics and the Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, and Dr. Christian Vercler, Clinical Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery in the Department of Surgery at the University of Michigan and Co-Chief of the Clinical Ethics Service in the Center for Bioethics and Social Sciences in Medicine. Drs. Stahl and Vercler address a trend known as Snapchat surgeons – plastic surgeons who amass sometimes millions of followers on the social media platform Snapchat by posting uncensored videos of operations they are performing. Together they offer their insight and expertise on the issue, and discuss whether these Snapchat performances are ethical. They also delve into the societal norms and power dynamics at play, and address how to move forward within the profession of plastic surgery in a world where social media seems to be here to stay.

Ways to Listen

This episode was produced and edited by Liz McDaniel in the Center for Ethics. Music: “While We Walk (2004)” by Antony Raijekov via Free Music Archive, licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License. Full episode transcript available.

About: No Easy Answers in Bioethics is a podcast series from the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences in the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. Each month Center for Ethics faculty and their collaborators discuss their ongoing work and research across many areas of bioethics—clinical ethics, evidence-based medicine, health policy, medical education, neuroethics, shared decision-making, and more. Episodes are hosted by H-Net: Humanities and Social Sciences Online.

Dr. Stahl presents at International Academy for Bioethical Inquiry

Devan Stahl photoOn July 16, Center Assistant Professor Dr. Devan Stahl presented “Ethics Beyond Autonomy: The Case of Snapchat Surgeons” at the International Academy for Bioethical Inquiry (IABI) Summer Symposium, held at Saint Louis University. Based on her recent publication in AMA Journal of Ethics, Dr. Stahl discussed the rise in vaginal cosmetic surgery performed on the social media platform Snapchat and its implications for our cultural conceptions of ‘normal genital appearance.’ Dr. Tobias Winright offered a response to the paper, which was then thoroughly discussed by the conference attendees.

Article from Dr. Stahl in April ‘AMA Journal of Ethics’

Devan Stahl photoCenter Assistant Professor Dr. Devan Stahl and co-author Christian J. Vercler (University of Michigan) have an article in the April 2018 issue of the AMA Journal of Ethics. Their article, “What Should Be the Surgeon’s Role in Defining “Normal” Genital Appearance?,” appears in the journal’s issue on ethical considerations in plastic and reconstructive surgery.

Abstract: The recent rise in women seeking cosmetic surgery of their genitalia (labiaplasty) coincides with the increasing number of surgeons posting videos of these operations on social media accounts and websites. Sociocultural influences significantly contribute to our ideas of what constitutes healthy and pathologic, and surgeons have historically played a role in defining “normal” and “abnormal” anatomy. In the nineteenth century, Saartjie Baartman—a woman with a large posterior and unusually long labia minora—was used by physicians to “educate” the public about these differences. We examine the parallels with the twenty-first century practice of surgeons using social media to educate patients about the operations they perform and discuss ethical and professional hazards associated with this practice.

The full article text is available online via the American Medical Association.

Learn the reality of ethics in plastic surgery — it’s not what you see on TV

bbag-iconPlastic Surgery Ethics: An Oxymoron?

Event flyer: Vercler Flyer

Most plastic surgeons portrayed in the media exhibit questionable moral judgment. After watching shows such as Nip/Tuck, Extreme Makeover, Dr. 90210, and The Swan, one could easily conclude that ethics plays no part in the practice of plastic surgery. Indeed, some have charged cosmetic surgery with being entirely outside the scope of medical practice. Dr. Vercler will examine the distinctions made between cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, discuss how plastic surgeons think about those distinctions, and uncover the different ethical frameworks that support these practices.

apr-23-bbagJoin us for Christian J. Vercler’s lecture on Wednesday, April 23, 2014 from noon till 1 pm in person or online:

In person: The lecture will take place in C102 East Fee Hall on MSU’s East Lansing campus. Feel free to bring your lunch! Beverages and light snacks will be provided.

Online: Here are some instructions for your first time joining the webinar, or if you have attended or viewed them before, go to the meeting!

Can’t make it? View this webinar and others as archived recordings.

Christian J. Vercler, MD, is Clinical Assistant Professor in the Division of Craniofacial Surgery in the Section of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Michigan. He serves on the faculty of the Center for Bioethics and Social Sciences at the University of Michigan. He completed a Fellowship in Clinical Ethics at the Emory University Center for Ethics and also has an MA in Bioethics. He has served on ethics committees since 1998, and has taught medical ethics to residents and medical students at Emory University, Harvard, and the University of Michigan. Dr. Vercler graduated from Wheaton College with a BS in Biology and an MA in Theological Studies. He went to medical school at the University of Illinois. He completed general surgery training at Emory University and plastic surgery at Harvard. He then did an additional fellowship in Craniofacial Surgery at the University of Michigan.