Susan Sherwin

Susan Sherwin (born 6 June 1947) is a Canadian philosopher. Her pioneering work has shaped feminist theory, ethics and bioethics, and she is considered one of the world's foremost feminist ethicists.

Education Sherwin received a B.A. (Hons.) in mathematics and philosophy from York University (1969) and a Ph.D. in philosophy from Stanford University (1974). Her dissertation, “Moral Foundations of Feminism”, was written under the supervision of Thomas Schwartz, and was the first dissertation in the United States on feminist ethics. Sherwin also completed a post-doctoral fellowship in the Moral Problems of Medicine Project at Case Western Reserve University (1973–1974).

Career Sherwin arrived at Dalhousie University in 1974 as the Department of Philosophy's first female faculty member, later becoming the department's first female chair; she was also an architect of Dalhousie's Gender and Women's Studies program, twice serving as its coordinator. She also was a founding member of the Dalhousie Women Faculty Organization. She served on the Board of Directors of Halifax Transition House, was part of the first equity committee of the Canadian Philosophical Association, and was a founding member of the Canadian Society for Women in Philosophy. and the agreement was concluded during her term.

Work Sherwin's graduate training began in the logic and philosophy of mathematics, but quickly evolved into health care ethics and feminist philosophy. In the mid-1980s, she combined these two areas of research to consider the implications of a distinctively feminist approach to bioethics. Sherwin's groundbreaking 1992 book, No Longer Patient: Feminist Ethics and Health Care, was the first book-length treatment of feminist bioethical theory, and “the first book that combined feminist philosophy with health care ethics to examine contemporary health issues through a feminist lens”. Considered a “landmark event in bioethics”, It has received praise as "an excellent, insightful book" with themes including "those of autonomy and agency and the prevalent trend in modern healthcare of concentrating on the patient while ignoring his or her economic and social milieu." Some of this work culminated in recommendations that informed Canada's Tri-Council Policy Statement on Ethical Research Involving Humans.

Sherwin was also involved in establishing the International Journal of Feminist Approaches to Bioethics, and wrote the lead essay for its inaugural issue.

Awards and honors On 6 May 2015, Sherwin was appointed to the Order of Canada by Governor General David Johnston “for her contributions as a scholar, mentor and leader in the field of feminist bioethics, notably through her writings on discrimination in health care.” Killam Prize in Humanities, 2006 Distinguished Woman Philosopher, Society for Women in Philosophy, 2004 Sarah Shorten Award, Canadian Association of University Teachers, 2000 Fellow, Royal Society of Canada, 1999 George Munro Professor of Philosophy (Metaphysics), 1999-2002 President, Dalhousie Faculty Association, 1979-1980