Health Care Law from a Comparative and European Perspective

Course objectives
In general, the course ‘Health Care Law from a European perspective’ aims to increase the knowledge, understanding and experience of students in health care law (including medical ethics). The module attempts to make students (law students, health policy makers and other interested persons) acquainted with both national and international dimensions of health care law. Its relevance to Central and Eastern European students concern the effects of international (e.g., European Union) regulation on national legal decision-making. As such, the course attempts to contribute in the further development of legal education in Central and Eastern Europe (SUN mission statement). At the same time, the course aims at exchanging knowledge and experiences between both scholars and students all over Europe. Such an exchange from other countries can enhance understanding of the meaning behind health care legal and ethical principles and provides an avenue for shared advice among those countries with commonalties in their systems.
 
To fulfil the stated mission of SUN, the course’s education programme is aimed at:
 
(i) promoting further development of legal science by:- increasing knowledge of general concepts and ideas of international health care law; legal theoretical principles of international health care law; tasks and role of international organisations, national governments and private institutions as concern regulating the rights of insured and patients; content of relevant international documents concerning cross border care; - increasing understanding of basic principles of health care law and ethics; major dilemmas in the area of patients’ rights, tensions as concerns international versus national law, and relevance of national and international case law; - increasing experience in managing legal norms and case law for new problems due to the introduction of (newly emerged) patients’ rights, cross border care and social health insurance reforms,
 
(ii) mobilising a collaborative network of legal scientists. Such a network will provide an extraordinary opportunity to share scientific knowledge and expertise with partners all over Europe. The academic discourse can enhance understanding of health care principles and provide an avenue for shared advice among various countries with commonalties in their systems. The resource persons participate in the European Centre for Advanced Legal Studies in Healthcare, Erasmus University Rotterdam (the Netherlands). The aims of the centre is to exchange knowledge and experience by building partnerships and to collaborate in education, training and retraining programmes of health personnel on various legal issues in health care. This network of European health lawyers has the expertise to initiate a new course ‘Health Care Law in an European Perspective’ and aims to contribute to theory formation through basic research, as applied research can inspire the formation of theory.