Preface

Summary

From the outset, the idea was to try to draw together parts of three vast areas of inquiry – ethics, computing, and medicine – and produce a document that would be accessible by and useful to scholars and practitioners in each domain. Daunting projects are made possible by supportive institutions and colleagues. Fortunately in this case, the support exceeded the daunt.

The idea for the book came while I was at Carnegie Mellon University's Center for Machine Translation and Center for the Advancement of Applied Ethics, and the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Medical Ethics. These three centers of excellence fostered a congenial and supportive environment in which to launch a novel project. Deep thanks are due Jaime Carbonell, Preston Covey, Peter Madsen, Alan Meisel, and Sergei Nirenburg.

In 1992 I organized a session on “Computers and Ethics in Medicine” at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Chicago. Four of the contributors to this volume – Terry Bynum, Randy Miller, John Snapper, and I – made presentations. A special acknowledgment is owed to Elliot R. Siegel of the National Library of Medicine and the AAAS Section on Information, Computing, and Communication for encouraging this effort, and for his wise counsel.

The original idea for a book blossomed as it became increasingly clear that there was a major gap in the burgeoning literatures in bioethics and medical informatics.