Applications open for FASPE Medical Fellowship Program

FASPE begins by examining the actions and choices of German physicians in enabling and executing Nazi policies. FASPE then draws on this historical example to help Medical Fellows grasp their role and responsibility as individuals with influence in their communities and to lead them to identify and confront the ethical issues currently facing physicians and the medical profession at large.

Each year, FASPE Medical awards fellowships to 14 to 16 medical students and residents. Fellows spend two weeks in Berlin and Poland, where they visit key sites of Nazi history and participate in daily seminars led by specialized faculty. The program couples the power of place with academic rigor and many informal opportunities for creative exchange.

FASPE draws on a large pool of applicants, whose diverse backgrounds and interests enrich discussions both inside and outside the seminar room. Medical Fellows travel with Seminary and Journalism Fellows, allowing them to broaden their understanding of the role of professionals over shared meals and activities and in several interdisciplinary seminars. FASPE Fellowships are fully funded so that financial ability does not affect participation.

Topics

FASPE Medical Fellows examine topics such as:

• the complicity of medical professionals in the design and execution of Nazi policies
• the allocation of medical care in a time of limited resources
• the role and limits of contemporary bioethics, including with regards to physician-assisted death and technological advancements
• complicated issues in research ethics, including when research is conducted outside of the United States and the impact of technological advancements
• the legacy of prejudice in the medical profession
• navigating multiple loyalties to individual patients, the larger patient population, the public good, research goals, medical institutions and more
• end-of-life care (structured as an interdisciplinary discussion with Seminary Fellows)
• tactics for addressing ethical issues within medicine’s institutions.

Eligibility Criteria

• FASPE Medical applicants must fit into one of following categories:
  • be enrolled in an MD or DO program (or equivalent) at the time of their application and anticipate completion of at least one clinical year prior to the start of the fellowship; OR
  • be enrolled in a residency program.
• Applicants must be 42 or younger as of the application deadline.
• FASPE seeks Fellows who are interested in engaging in discussions with their co-Fellows and faculty, and who have the intellectual and emotional maturity to unpack difficult and controversial issues responsibly and respectfully in small group settings. FASPE seeks Medical Fellows with diverse interests and backgrounds, including those pursuing careers practicing medicine, in research, or in public health. FASPE selects its Fellows on the basis of their academic background, personal and professional experiences, capacity for leadership and ability to contribute to the program and the alumni community. All applications are welcome and reviewed.

For more information, visit FASPE.