The Dilemma of Prenatal Screening | Megan Best | ISCAST–NZCIS Conversations 2023 S2 | #4

Prenatal screening of pregnancy for fetal abnormality is increasingly routine in Western countries. It was introduced to improve outcomes and increase choice for women. While women who value human life from the time of fertilisation have often opposed the practice of prenatal screening if abortion is an intended outcome, screening may be justified on other grounds. However, regardless of one’s view of the moral status of the fetus, problems with informed consent, scope of testing, impact of termination for fetal anomaly, and discrimination against those who refuse termination make the procedure ethically problematic for all participants. This talk questions the place of routine prenatal screening as an ethical way of increasing consumer choice.

DR MEGAN BEST

Dr Megan Best has over 30 years of experience in palliative care and medical ethics teaching, research, and practice. She has taught medical ethics at tertiary level since 2001 and is currently an Associate Professor of Bioethics at the Institute for Ethics and Society at The University of Notre Dame Australia. She is internationally known for her work in Christian bioethics. Her research has focussed on bioethics at the beginning and end of life, and in the areas of genomics and palliative care. She has also researched extensively in the areas of spirituality in healthcare, whole person care, and psycho-oncology. She is the author of Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: Ethics and the Beginning of Human Life (2012) and A Life Already Started (2013). Throughout her career she has engaged with evidence based health policy development, making important contributions to palliative care strategy and health legislation.

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