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Director, Center for Bioethics and Clinical Leadership, Union Graduate College

A public health researcher and ethicist by training, Dr. Sean Philpott holds advanced degrees in microbiology, medical anthropology, and bioethics. He is currently the Director of the Center for BIoethics and Clinical Leadership at Union Graduate College (UGC), where he oversees the Bioethics Program -- a joint program between UGC and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai that provides graduate level education in clinical ethics, research ethics and bioethics policy. He is also the Project Director for Union Graduate College’s Fogarty-funded Advanced Certificate Program in Research Ethics for Central and Eastern Europe. In addition, he is the former Chair of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Human Studies Review Board, an advisory panel that reviews the scientific and ethical aspects of research involving human participants submitted to the EPA for regulatory purposes, and the former Chair of the American Public Health Association's Ethics Group.

Before joining Union Graduate College he was Science and Ethics Officer for the Global Campaign for Microbicides (GCM), an advocacy project at an international non-profit organization called PATH, where his work focused on building the capacity of developing country researchers and stakeholders to design, conduct and monitor clinical trials of new user-controlled tools to prevent HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. He also was previously Associate Professor of Medicine at Albany Medical College and Adjunct Professor at the University at Albany School of Public Health, Deputy Director of the Alden March Bioethics Institute (AMBI), Executive Editor of the American Journal of Bioethics and a long-term member of the New York State Department of Health Institutional Review Board.

Experience

  • –present
    Director, Bioethics Program, Union Graduate College

Education

  • 2006 
    Union Graduate College, MSBioethics
  • 1996 
    University of California at Berkeley, PhD

Publications

  • 2013
    An analysis of online courses in research ethics in the Fogarty-sponsored bioethics training programs, Journal of Empirical Research in Human Research Ethics
  • 2013
    Building research ethics capacity in post-Communist countries: Experience of two Fogarty training programs, Journal of Empirical Research in Human Research Ethics
  • 2013
    Ethical arguments for and against sperm sorting for non-medical sex selection: A review, Reproductive Biomedicine
  • 2013
    Social justice, public health ethics, and the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention, American Journal of Preventative Medicine
  • 2012
    America’s drug problem: Ongoing shortages of critical medicines, Hastings Center Report
  • 2012
    De minimis risk: A new category of research risk, American Journal of Bioethics
  • 2011
    Protection of human participants enrolled in critical care research trials, Journal of Intensive Care Medicine
  • 2011
    The review, approval, and marketing of biosimilars in the United States. Part 2: Ethical issues, Bioprocess International
  • 2011
    (Un)Risky business: Adolescents and HIV prevention trials, American Journal of Bioethics
  • 2011
    Establishing clear standards of prevention in HIV prevention trials, Journal of Medical Ethics
  • 2011
    AIDS: The time for changes in law and policy is now, International Journal of Law in Context
  • 2010
    . Why Avandia proves bio pharma needs stronger ethical standards, Bioethics
  • 2010
    Medical research that never should have taken place, Bioethics Forum
  • 2010
    . Impact of donor-imposed requirements and restrictions on standards of prevention and access to care in HIV prevention trials, Public Health Ethics
  • 2010
    The review, approval, and marketing of biosimilars in the United States. Part 1: Safety and regulatory issues, Bioprocess International

Grants and Contracts

  • 2014
    Caribbean Research Ethics Education Initiative (PENDING)
    Role:
    Project Director
    Funding Source:
    US National Institutes of Health
  • 2013
    E-Education in Research Ethics: Central and Eastern Europe
    Role:
    Project Director
    Funding Source:
    US National Institutes of Health
  • 2011
    HIV Prevention Research Ethics Training Institute (RETI)
    Role:
    Consultant
    Funding Source:
    US National Institutes of Health
  • 2010
    E-Enhanced Collaborative Ethics Committee Review of Research Protocols
    Role:
    Project Director
    Funding Source:
    US National Institutes of Health
  • 2010
    A Normative and Empirical Exploration of Care and Prevention in South African HIV Vaccine Trials.
    Role:
    Consultant
    Funding Source:
    Welcome Trust
  • 2009
    Human Microbiome Research and the Social Fabric
    Role:
    Consultant
    Funding Source:
    US National Institutes of Health