Rate My Professor Simon Walker

Dr Simon Walker is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Bioethics within the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Otago. He holds a BA, MA, PhD, and PGDipArts from the University of Otago. Previously, he worked as a palliative care researcher, which led him to explore the connections between moral philosophy and healthcare, particularly how personal values influence experiences of and responses to suffering—a relationship rarely addressed in contemporary ethical discussions. Walker teaches ethics to students in medicine, physiotherapy, pharmacy, dentistry, and oral health, convening courses such as BITC 301 and BITC 401. He also serves as Postgraduate Coordinator for the Department of Bioethics and participates in ethics consultations, including on topics like ethics and prioritisation.

Walker's research focuses on moral philosophy, the nature of value, meaning, suffering, and end-of-life care. He draws on a wide range of philosophical authors, with particular interests in Kant, Wittgenstein, and Spinoza, to develop a conception of ethics that demonstrates the fundamental link between values and suffering and examines how life may retain value amid suffering. This work integrates clinical experience, ancient and modern philosophy, and literature. His recent publications include: Li, J.-R., Walker, S., & Nie, J.-B. (2026). “Because this is my body”: Patients', families' and health professionals' perspectives on family-oriented informed consent in China. BMC Medical Ethics; Li, J.-R., Walker, S., & Nie, J.-B. (2025). The harms of family-oriented informed consent in clinical practice in two megacities in northern China. Asian Bioethics Review; Winters, J. P., Walker, S., Pickering, N. J., & Jaye, C. (2025). Conduit or conductor? Physician providers' descriptions of their role as MAiD assessors in the first years after legalisation in Canada. Journal of Medical Ethics; Penfield Winters, J., Jaye, C., Pickering, N. J., & Walker, S. (2025). Providing medically assisted dying in Canada: A qualitative study of emotional and moral impact. Journal of Medical Ethics, 51(6), 400-410; Walker, S. (2023). Informed consent for medical student involvement in patient care: an updated consensus statement; Walker, S., Egan, R., & Young, J. (2020). A citizens' jury on euthanasia/assisted dying: Does informed deliberation change people's views?; and Young, J., Egan, R., Walker, S., et al. (2019). The euthanasia debate: synthesising the evidence on New Zealander's attitudes.