The Silent Patient: On Medical Silencing and Epistemic Injustice in Healthcare

Target audience

PhD students from the Doctoral School of Arts, Humanities and Law or from the Doctoral School of Life
Sciences and Medicine, as well as advanced Research Master’s students in Philosophy. No specific background knowledge
is required, but a certain familiarity with relevant topics is recommended

Organizing and scientific committee

Dr. Sigrid Wallaert ( Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences)
Prof. Dr. Veerle Provoost, (Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences)
Prof. Dr. Seppe Segers, (Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences)

Abstract

Epistemic injustice is a hot topic in philosophical research, and has in recent times been applied fruitfully to the context
of healthcare and medicine. Inspired by Dr. Rageshri Dhairyawan’s book Unheard: The Practice of Medical Silencing (2024),
this course seeks to invite perspectives from different disciplines (philosophy, normative ethics, empirical ethics, disability
studies, medicine, gender studies, and history) and bring them into conversation, giving doctoral students from these
various backgrounds the opportunity to learn from and engage with these views.

Objectives

The course aims to bring together a broad range of perspectives from different disciplines (philosophy, normative ethics,
empirical ethics, disability studies, medicine, gender studies, and history) and invite them to reflect on a very topical and
pressing issue, namely medical silencing and epistemic injustice in healthcare. Giving PhD students from three Flemish
universities the opportunity to learn from and engage with these varying perspectives will allow them to find inspiration
and guidance for their own PhD projects, as well as contribute to their understanding of the state of the art as it pertains
to these issues. Moreover, the lecturers get the opportunity to present recent and/or ongoing research to an interested
and active audience, allowing them to test out ideas and get new ones in return.

Dates and venue

16/06: 12:00 – 17:00

17/06: 10:00 – 17:30

18/06: 10:00 – 16:30

Vergaderzaal Camelot (Campus Boekentoren, Blandijn)

Programme

Registration

• Follow this link for the registration and waiting list. We check if you are eligible to participate. Due to limited places, we give priority to PhD students. Your registration will be confirmed by separate e-mail (outlook invite).
• Cancellation of your registration can only be performed by sending an email to doctoralschools@ugent.be.

• The no show policy applies.

Registration fee

Free of charge for Doctoral School members.

Number of participants

Maximum 15

Language

English

Training method

 -Lectures: 12h total (2h per guest lecturer, to be utilised as they see fit*)
- PhD student presentations: 3h
- Informal discussion during lunch and breaks: 4h

Evaluation method

After successful participation, the Doctoral School Office will add this course to your curriculum of the Doctoral Training Programme in Oasis. Please note that this can take up to one to two months after completion of the course.