Day 5 - Melbourne - Politics, compassion and empirical ethics...

The keynote address this morning was by Michel Kazatchkine, United Nations Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The conference theme was the focus of his talk: Equity and Access to Healthcare.   He stated that 'equity' is 'an ethical principle consonant with and closely related to human rights principles'.

Mr Kazatchkine pointed out that 30 years after the discovery of the HIV virus, there is reason to celebrate in that there is a decrease in mortality and more people are now 'living with HIV' rather than dying with it. He argued that increasing inequity was the 'greatest killer'  and that despite great advances globally, the responses have been slower in developing countries.

Political activism and global political commitment were two important factors in bringing about change in relation to infectious diseases. He praised nurses for their positive contribution to health and cited Martha Nussbaum 'we must rely on compassionate individuals to keep political insights alive.'

The equity/ethics/human rights strand of the programme is of particular interest and I met several past and present Nursing Ethics editorial board members there. All of the presentations I attended today focused on empirical ethics projects. I wonder if we are doing enough to consider the challenge of relating philosophical scholarship with empirical findings in relation to nursing ethics topics, for example relating to dignity in care. This is an area I suggest we need to continue to engage with.....