Lectures and Events
The events below include our biweekly Montgomery Lectures, other events we host, and relevant events hosted by other groups at Northwestern University and its affiliated clinical partners.
The Montgomery Lectures Series is presented biweekly on Thursdays from noon to 12:45pm, and is open to all. Presenters are faculty in the Master of Arts in Medical Humanities & Bioethics program, CBMH members, and special guests. This series was named in 2013 for Emeritus Professor Kathryn Montgomery.
Subscribe to CBMH emails to stay informed about our lectures and other events
Apr
02
Intentionally Infecting Humans: Is It Ethical? - Seema Shah
Chicago - 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM
The Master of Arts in Medical Humanities and Bioethics Program
Presents
A Montgomery Lecture
With
Seema K. Shah, JD, HEC-C
Founder s Board Professor of Medical Ethics,
Lurie Children s Hospital
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine,
Pritzker School of Law (by courtesy)
Intentionally Infecting Humans: Is It Ethical?
In controlled human infection (CHI) research, researchers intentionally expose people to pathogens to gain scientific insights. CHI research has led to key breakthroughs but remains controversial. In this talk, Professor Shah will first provide a brief historical overview of this research, demonstrating how ethically problematic research from the past still casts a shadow on research today. She will then explain modern CHI research and demonstrate how a fundamental lack of understanding of this research contributes to ongoing ethical controversy. Professor Shah will also provide an ethical framework for analyzing CHI research that highlights the difference between creating a new model for infecting humans for the first time and using an established and safe model in CHI studies. This important distinction can help calibrate when extra scrutiny is needed for CHI research. Finally, the lecture will close by showing how lessons from the analysis of CHI research can help advance research ethics more generally.
This lecture is open to the public and will be held in the Searle Seminar Room in the Lurie Research Building (303 E Superior St), Chicago Campus. For those outside the Chicago area and anyone who would prefer to attend remotely, a Zoom option is also available.
Only Zoom attendees are required to register
** PLEASE REGISTER TO RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK**
REGISTER HERE
Read more about this series | Sign up for lecture announcements
Apr
07
NM Medical Ethics Grand Rounds - Bodies and the State: 2026 Update on Access to Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare
Online - 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Northwestern Medicine
Presents
Medical Ethics Grand Rounds
With
Katie Watson, JD
Professor
Medical Education, Medical Social Sciences, and Ob/Gyn
Faculty, Medical Humanities and Bioethics Graduate Program
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Bodies and the State:
2026 Update on Access to Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare
Microsoft Teams meeting
Join: Microsoft Teams Meeting
Passcode: v26Rz734
Registration is not required unless you need confirmation of attendance to receive continuing education hours.
This event is not presented by the Center for Bioethics and Medical Humanities. We are sharing it here with permission.
Apr
13
BOUNDARIES: The Ninth Annual Northwestern Bioethics and Medical Humanities Conference
Chicago - 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
The Center for Bioethics and Medical Humanities and the Medical Humanities and Bioethics Graduate Program are hosting a one-day conference dedicated to engaging the Northwestern and Chicagoland communities in the rich, multidisciplinary research and scholarship of our field.
/////
This event will feature a keynote presentation by Tyler Tate, MD, MA, titled "To Suffer What We Can t Evade: What Is Medicine s Role in Responding to Suffering?" Additional programming will include an exciting range of talks and discussions, centered around this year's theme--BOUNDARIES--and showcasing diverse work by a mix of Northwestern Medicine clinicians and researchers, colleagues from other institutions, graduate students, and MHB graduate alumni.
/////
Registration is free. For updated details and to register, please visit:
https://bioethics.northwestern.edu/conference/
Apr
16
Cracking the Code: Unilateral DNRs, Moral Distress, and Narrative Coherence - Richard Leiter
Chicago - 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM
The Master of Arts in Medical Humanities and Bioethics Program
Presents
A Montgomery Lecture
With
Richard Leiter, MD, MA
Senior Physician
Director, Adult Palliative Care Inpatient Consult Service
Department of Supportive Oncology
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Cracking the Code:
Unilateral DNRs, Moral Distress, and Narrative Coherence
Clinician-initiated do not resuscitate orders ( unilateral DNRs) involve the decision to withhold CPR and mechanical ventilation without a patient or their surrogate s consent. In this talk, I will examine the ethics of these orders, using case examples from my clinical experience as a palliative care physician. Drawing on an approach based in narrative ethics, I will suggest a path forward that recenters patients and families in care decisions, while acknowledging healthcare worker expertise and emotion.
This lecture is open to the public and will be held in the Searle Seminar Room in the Lurie Research Building (303 E Superior St), Chicago Campus. For those outside the Chicago area and anyone who would prefer to attend remotely, a Zoom option is also available.
Only Zoom attendees are required to register
** PLEASE REGISTER TO RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK**
REGISTER HERE
Read more about this series | Sign up for lecture announcements
Apr
30
Over, Under, Around and Around: Navigating High-Stakes Medical Decisions for People with Serious Mental Illness - Sarah Russe
Chicago - 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM
The Master of Arts in Medical Humanities and Bioethics Program
Presents
A Montgomery Lecture
With
Sarah J Russe, DBe, MA, HEC-C
Program Manager, Clinical Consult Service
Clinical Ethicist
Northwestern Memorial Hospital
Over, Under, Around and Around:
Navigating High-Stakes Medical Decisions for People with Serious Mental Illness
This talk will explore the ethically, medically, socially, and emotionally complex calculus at play in determining appropriate care plans for people with acute medical illness and serious mental illness. We will evaluate situations that call into question the boundaries between autonomy and paternalism, and challenge ourselves to consider what we owe to patients who cannot fit neatly into the frameworks that structure our best practices.
This lecture is open to the public and will be held in the Searle Seminar Room in the Lurie Research Building (303 E Superior St), Chicago Campus. For those outside the Chicago area and anyone who would prefer to attend remotely, a Zoom option is also available.
Only Zoom attendees are required to register
** PLEASE REGISTER TO RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK**
REGISTER HERE
Read more about this series | Sign up for lecture announcements
May
14
The 5th Annual Carlos Montezuma Native Health Lecture - Teresa Montoya
Chicago - 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM
The Montgomery Lecture series addresses diverse topics within bioethics and the medical humanities. Presenters are faculty, affiliates, and alumni of the Medical Humanities and Bioethics Graduate Program along with special guests. The lectures run every other Thursday from noon to 12:45pm during The Graduate School's fall, winter, and spring quarters. They are open to students, faculty, and the general public. Formerly titled, "Special Topics in MH&B," this series was renamed in 2013 for Emeritus Professor Kathryn Montgomery.
WATCH THIS SPACE FOR UPDATES!
This lecture is open to the public and will be held in the Searle Seminar Room in the Lurie Research Building (303 E Superior St), Chicago Campus. For those outside the Chicago area and anyone who would prefer to attend remotely, a Zoom option is also available.
Only Zoom attendees are required to register
** PLEASE REGISTER TO RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK**
REGISTER HERE
Read more about this series | Sign up for lecture announcements
May
28
Consequences of the End of Roe - Diana Greene Foster
Chicago - 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM
The Master of Arts in Medical Humanities and Bioethics Program
Presents
A Montgomery Lecture
With
Diana Greene Foster, PhD
Professor
University of California, San Francisco
Consequences of the End of Roe
This talk examines the landscape of abortion access in the United States following the fall of Roe v. Wade. It will explore why initial dire predictions regarding the impact of state bans on abortion care did not capture the complexities of the abortion after Roe. We will also discuss barriers faced by those who remain unable to access abortion services, particularly individuals experiencing emergency pregnancy complications. Additionally, Professor Foster will delve into the evolving field of abortion research, addressing how past studies shape our understanding of abortion access today and what has changed in the research landscape.
This lecture is open to the public and will be held in the Searle Seminar Room in the Lurie Research Building (303 E Superior St), Chicago Campus. For those outside the Chicago area and anyone who would prefer to attend remotely, a Zoom option is also available.
Only Zoom attendees are required to register
** PLEASE REGISTER TO RECEIVE THE ZOOM LINK**
REGISTER HERE
Read more about this series | Sign up for lecture announcements