Local

Secular Humanists to explore medical ethics

Robert Beren, M.D.

Robert Beren, M.D., will lead “A Jewish Secular Humanist Conversation about Medical Ethics” for the Secular Humanist Jewish Circle on Saturday, June 23, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. at the Dusenberry-River Branch Library.

Beren will discuss who owns your body and how that correlates with living wills, advanced directives, medical powers of attorney and the limits of technology and/or Jewish law. He will address the ethics of organ donation and the problem of defining death. A question and answer session will follow.

A member of the Secular Humanist Jewish Circle, Beren grew up in Tucson and attended the University of Arizona College of Medicine. Following his family practice residency in Colorado, he and his wife worked in a refugee camp on the Thai-Cambodian border, returning to Tucson to raise a family. Beren has primarily practiced geriatric medicine since 1996 and has been with Tucson House Calls since 2004. He has also worked in hospice for several years.

The program is free and will include a brief oneg. Advance registration is required. RSVP to Susan Rubin at 577-7718 or srubinaz@comcast.net or Elizabeth Jackson at 722-4335 or elizmjackson@ comcast.net. Participants are asked to bring a snack to share and a donation of food for the Community Food Bank.