Roberto Andorno
I am Associate Professor ('Privatdozent') of biomedical law and bioethics at the Faculty of Law, and Research Fellow at the Institute of Biomedical Ethics of the University of Zurich, Switzerland. My research and teaching are focused on various issues at the interface of law, human rights and bioethics. I also teach courses on scientific integrity at the Graduate Campus of the University of Zurich, and courses on the ethics of emerging technologies at the University of Basel.
I come originally from Argentina, where I did my law studies at the University of Rosario and completed a doctoral degree in law at the University of Buenos Aires (1991). In 1994 I completed a second doctoral degree in law at the University of Paris-Est Créteil with a thesis on the ethical and legal aspects of assisted reproductive technologies.
Between 1999 and 2005 I conducted various research projects relating to bioethics at the Faculty of Philosophy of Laval University (Quebec), at the University of Göttingen as a Humboldt-Foundation Fellow, and at the University of Tübingen, Germany.
From 1998 to 2005 I served as a member of the International Bioethics Committee (IBC) of UNESCO as representative of Argentina, and participated in this capacity in the drafting of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights (2005). In 2008 I acted as Rapporteur for the Council of Europe's Committee on Bioethics, with a report on the regulation of advance directives in comparative European law. In 2023 I prepared a report on neurotechnologies and human rights for UNESCO (Office for Latin America). Between 2014 and 2016 I was President of the European Society for Philosophy of Medicine and Healthcare (ESPMH). Between 2019 and 2021 I was involved in the EU Project INTEGRITY, which aimed to identify ways to improve the teaching of scientific integrity in Europe. In 2024 I was appointed by UNESCO as a member of the Expert Group tasked with the development of a Draft Recommendation on the ethics of neurotechnology.
If you have questions or requests, please feel free to contact me at: roberto.andorno@uzh.ch
Address: Faculty of Law
University of Zurich
Rämistrasse 74/65
8001 Zurich
Switzerland
I come originally from Argentina, where I did my law studies at the University of Rosario and completed a doctoral degree in law at the University of Buenos Aires (1991). In 1994 I completed a second doctoral degree in law at the University of Paris-Est Créteil with a thesis on the ethical and legal aspects of assisted reproductive technologies.
Between 1999 and 2005 I conducted various research projects relating to bioethics at the Faculty of Philosophy of Laval University (Quebec), at the University of Göttingen as a Humboldt-Foundation Fellow, and at the University of Tübingen, Germany.
From 1998 to 2005 I served as a member of the International Bioethics Committee (IBC) of UNESCO as representative of Argentina, and participated in this capacity in the drafting of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights (2005). In 2008 I acted as Rapporteur for the Council of Europe's Committee on Bioethics, with a report on the regulation of advance directives in comparative European law. In 2023 I prepared a report on neurotechnologies and human rights for UNESCO (Office for Latin America). Between 2014 and 2016 I was President of the European Society for Philosophy of Medicine and Healthcare (ESPMH). Between 2019 and 2021 I was involved in the EU Project INTEGRITY, which aimed to identify ways to improve the teaching of scientific integrity in Europe. In 2024 I was appointed by UNESCO as a member of the Expert Group tasked with the development of a Draft Recommendation on the ethics of neurotechnology.
If you have questions or requests, please feel free to contact me at: roberto.andorno@uzh.ch
Address: Faculty of Law
University of Zurich
Rämistrasse 74/65
8001 Zurich
Switzerland
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Introduction Switzerland lacks specific legal regulation
of assistance in suicide. The practice has, however,
developed since the 1980s as a consequence of a gap
in the Swiss Criminal Code and is performed by private
right-to-
die
organisations. Traditionally, assistance
in suicide is considered contrary to the philosophy
of palliative care. Nonetheless, Swiss palliative care
physicians regularly receive patient requests for suicide
assistance. Their attitudes towards the legal regulations
of this practice and their experience in this context
remain unclear.
Objectives Our study aimed to explore and describe
the attitudes and experiences of Swiss palliative care
physicians concerning the legal situation of suicide
assistance.
Methods In 2019, we performed an exploratory
interview study with 12 Swiss palliative care physicians
on palliative sedation as an alternative to assisted
suicide. In this paper, we present the results that
emerged from a thematic subanalysis of the data.
Results Participants stated that assistance in suicide
and palliative care are based on opposing philosophies,
but they admitted a shift in paradigm over the last
years in the sense that one practice does not necessarily
exclude the other. They reported various roles in suicide
assistance and considered that the current activities of
Swiss right-to-
die
organisations were problematic and
needed to be regulated by law.
Discussion and conclusion These results could
enrich national and international reflection on suicide
assistance in the context of palliative care by reducing
confusion between the two practices and strengthening
the confidence of patients and their relatives.
Introduction Switzerland lacks specific legal regulation
of assistance in suicide. The practice has, however,
developed since the 1980s as a consequence of a gap
in the Swiss Criminal Code and is performed by private
right-to-
die
organisations. Traditionally, assistance
in suicide is considered contrary to the philosophy
of palliative care. Nonetheless, Swiss palliative care
physicians regularly receive patient requests for suicide
assistance. Their attitudes towards the legal regulations
of this practice and their experience in this context
remain unclear.
Objectives Our study aimed to explore and describe
the attitudes and experiences of Swiss palliative care
physicians concerning the legal situation of suicide
assistance.
Methods In 2019, we performed an exploratory
interview study with 12 Swiss palliative care physicians
on palliative sedation as an alternative to assisted
suicide. In this paper, we present the results that
emerged from a thematic subanalysis of the data.
Results Participants stated that assistance in suicide
and palliative care are based on opposing philosophies,
but they admitted a shift in paradigm over the last
years in the sense that one practice does not necessarily
exclude the other. They reported various roles in suicide
assistance and considered that the current activities of
Swiss right-to-
die
organisations were problematic and
needed to be regulated by law.
Discussion and conclusion These results could
enrich national and international reflection on suicide
assistance in the context of palliative care by reducing
confusion between the two practices and strengthening
the confidence of patients and their relatives.
trabajo evalúa las implicaciones de los diferentes usos de las neurotecnologías en relación a los derechos humanos y sugiere que el marco actual de derechos humanos puede no ser suficiente para responder a estos desafíos emergentes. Después de analizar la relación entre neurociencia y derechos humanos, identificamos cuatro nuevos derechos que pueden ser de gran relevancia en las próximas décadas: el derecho a la libertad cognitiva, el derecho a la privacidad mental, el derecho a la integridad mental y el derecho a la continuidad psicológica.