June 16-19, 2025

4th edition of the Summer School series on The Age Criterion

Rolling admissions open until April 27, 2025 via the VIU website | 5 places available

VIU Scientific Coordinator: Fabrizio Turoldo, Ca' Foscari University of Venice

The program offers professionals, students and early career researchers the opportunity to critically reflect, with the help of highly qualified experts, on topical issues that raise ethical and deontological dilemmas, relating to health care ethics.
A fundamental feature of the School concerns its method, which is characterized by a continuous and intense interdisciplinary exchange between doctors, philosophers, economists, jurists, psychiatrists and sociologists.

During this fourth edition, the course will focus on the myriad of ethical issues presented by end-of-life care. These dilemmas often involve deeply personal and culturally sensitive decisions, reflecting the profound significance of death and dying in human life. The purpose of the summer school is to explore several key ethical issues associated with end-of-life care, including social inequalities at the end of life, the role of ethics consultation, the patient’s right to make decisions about their own body and treatment, assisted dying and euthanasia, and ethics of palliative care.

Contributing member universities:
- Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
- Tor Vergata University of Rome
- University of Lausanne

Faculty
Mark Aulisio, Case Western Reserve University, US
Agar Brugiavini, Ca' Foscari University of Venice & VIU, IT
Claudia Gamondi, University of Lausanne, CH
Jürgen Maurer, University of Lausanne, CH
Giacomo Pasini, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, IT
Mario Picozzi, University of Insubria, IT
Stefano Semplici, Tor Vergata University of Rome, IT
Anna Slettmyr, Karolinska Institutet, SE
Fabrizio Turoldo, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, IT

Which are the main activities?
- Presentations in the fields of biomedicine, bioethics, psychiatrics, sociology, moral philosophy, philosophy of science, geriatrics, epidemiology, patient care, health economics, public health, demography and history of art;
- Interactive sessions, such as “tutoring sessions”, aimed at giving participants the opportunity to discuss their own research ideas with senior speakers in individual or small group meetings.

What’s special about the Summer School?
Attending the school means developing transversal competences since the approach is multidisciplinary, and those who have a specific philosophical, economic or sociological background will learn more about medical advances in medical research and ethical issues related to healthcare, becoming familiar with the specific language in which MDs deal with these issues as well.

Physicians, high-level policy makers or officials who may take part in this program will be able to learn how to connect issues between the health dimension of ageing and the ethic, legal and economic ones. 

Learning Outcomes
The course allows students, researchers and professionals from various fields to hone important skills that are located in an interdisciplinary terrain. Professional ethics and deontology are in fact transversal sectors, useful and necessary in the most diverse professional contexts.

Physicians, jurists, philosophers, economists, sociologists and political scientists will have the opportunity to test different perspectives of thought and different theoretical systems in the light of extremely important and current case studies.

Who can apply?
Professionals in the health care sector, PhD students, post-doc scholars, graduates and undergraduates in medicine, philosophy, political sciences, sociology, social work, economics, statistics. PhD students and researchers will have the opportunity to present their own research in a presentation or a poster session; candidates who wish to present their research can include the request either on the application form or submit it following selection.

Credits
A Certificate of attendance will be issued at the end of the course.
Number of ECTS equivalence: 2

The Program will admit 25 participants.

Applicants must submit the application form, a brief motivation letter including candidate’s interests and research, and a curriculum vitae with photo.

Fees
Applicants from VIU member universities: € 300 incl. VAT
Other applicants: € 600 incl. VAT

The fee will cover tuition, teaching materials, lunches in the San Servolo cafeteria and social events.

Student participants will be responsible for covering their own travel expenses to and from Venice, local transportation, and evening meals. 

Accommodation costs on campus
Applicants can ask for VIU assistance in booking accommodation on San Servolo Campus, in multiple rooms with other participants for the duration of the Summer School: further information about the costs is available in the Brochure and Application form. Please note that the facility is not managed by VIU and availability cannot be guaranteed for rolling admission candidates.

For further information:
ageing@univiu.org