Recent developments in medicine and law

This article addresses important developments in the field of medicine and law during the period of September 2000 through August 2001. It does not discuss every reported case or piece of legislation but surveys some of the more significant developments in the medicine and law arena.     

The effects of skeletal preparation techniques on DNA from human and non-human bone

The forensic pathologist increasingly relies on the forensic anthropologist to be the consulting expert in human identification. Likewise, if identification is not possible from visual inspection of skeletal remains, the forensic biologist may be called upon to conduct DNA analysis. The possibility of downstream DNA testing needs to be considered when skeletal preparation techniques are employed to deflesh human remains, as they have the potential to strongly impact genetic analyses and subsequent identification. In this study, three cleaning techniques, boiling bone in water, in bleach, and in powdered detergent/sodium carbonate, were tested for their effect on nuclear and mtDNA recovery from a variety of human and non-human bones. A statistically significant reduction in DNA yields occurred in non-human bones cleaned with bleach, and DNA degradation was apparent electrophoretically. The human bones also showed much lower yields from bleach cleaning, while the detergent/carbonate method allowed the largest segments of DNA to be amplified, indicating it may have a less degradative effect on bone DNA than either of the other cleaning processes.     

The impact of past sexual experiences on attributions of responsibility for rape

Two factors potentially affect observers'attributions of responsibility to a rape survivor: how closely they identify with the survivor and how much they adhere to rape myths. To assess the impact of these factors, 157 female college students categorized by their sexual assault history and by their acceptance of rape myths, evaluated a sexual assault scenario. It was hypothesized that previously victimized participants would attribute less blame, and that those participants who self-identify as rape survivors would view the assault as rape more often than other participants. Neither hypothesis was supported. As expected, those who scored higher on the Rape Myths Acceptance Scale(RMAS) blamed the victim more and were less likely to believe rape had occurred. Only one subscale of the RMAS, Adversarial Sexual Beliefs, was consistently associated with participants'evaluation of the scenario, suggesting that this dimension may be especially important to understanding an observer's assessment of rape.     

Legal consequences and ethical dilemmas of pain perception in persistent vegetative states

"Persistent vegetative state" (PVS) describes brain-damaged patients who survive their injuries in a sleeplike, insensible state, with periodic awakenings. Due to technological advances, such individuals can sustain biological existence for prolonged periods of time. Their existence results in a dichotomy between the legal and medical interpretations of persistent vegetative states, giving rise to ethical conflicts. The author reviews the limitations in our understanding of what PVS signifies for the afflicted individual, and explores the conflicts arising from such limitations that may impact an individual's right to live or die. The author concludes that the medical community has yet to adopt consistent clinical criteria to diagnose PVS and that a universal standard for PVS is needed to avoid the abuse of vegetative individuals' rights.     

What's the problem with gender-based analysis? Gender mainstreaming policy and practice in Canada

Abstract: Gender “mainstreaming” is an important concept in feminist politics because it integrates a gendered perspective into all policy- and decision-making. However, while most scholars agree that gender mainstreaming has the potential to transform social relations, to date it has been limited and delivered only marginal benefits for a few women. In the Canadian context, scholars have pointed to several contextual and conceptual issues that limit the transformative potential of gender-based analysis. While such studies have contributed to our understanding of the impacts of gender mainstreaming, the author suggests that we must also explore the creative or productive dimensions of mainstreaming. When we do so, we see that gender mainstreaming constructs a new form of worker: the “gender expert,” who is then given authority to analyse, monitor and suggest interventions based on “expert analysis.” From this perspective, gender analysis becomes a “technology of rule,” constructing gender experts whose power ultimately goes unscrutinized in the context of the organization, thus obscuring the ways in which gender systems are reproduced or fractured by gender mainstreaming itself. In closing, the author calls for a reorientation of gender mainstreaming, away from an analytic approach that focuses only on the instrumental effects of policies and towards an approach that illuminates both the instrumental and creative impacts of policies.