Rate My Professor Elizabeth Fenton

Dr Elizabeth Fenton is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Bioethics at the University of Otago's Dunedin School of Medicine, within the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Division. She holds a PhD and an MPH from the University of Virginia, drawing on a background in philosophy and public health. Her research focuses on public health ethics, global health, resource prioritisation, and health policy, with particular emphasis on fairness and equity in health resource allocation and policymaking. She has professional experience working for the National Ethics Advisory Committee in New Zealand and the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues in Washington, D.C. Fenton teaches bioethics across health professional schools, serving as Lecturer in BITC 404 (Ethics and Health Care) and PHIL 235 (Environmental Philosophy).

Her publications appear in prominent journals, addressing ethical dimensions of health crises, policy, and resource management. Key works include 'We want to help: Ethical challenges of medical migration and brain waste during a pandemic' (2023, Journal of Medical Ethics, with K. Chillag), 'Ethics and ENDS' (2022, Tobacco Control, with L. Robertson and J. Hoek), 'Reciprocity and resources' (2021, Journal of Practical Ethics), 'Conditions of global health crisis decision-making: An ethical analysis' (2021, Journal of Bioethical Inquiry, with K. Chillag), and 'Management of personal protective equipment in New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic: Report from the Auditor-General' (2020, New Zealand Medical Journal). Earlier contributions encompass 'Genetic enhancement—a threat to human rights?' (2008, Bioethics) and 'Bioethics and human rights: curb your enthusiasm' (2010, Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics). She is a member of the Otago Global Health Institute and engages in seminars on justice in public health care.