Simon Gerhards
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Research Associate
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Simon Gerhards
Simon Gerhards studied medicine at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg and Charité Berlin. Before his medical studies, he completed a government-funded volunteering-service in India and a one-year orientation study at Leibniz Kolleg in Tübingen. From 2018 to 2020, he was involved as a student assistant and tutor for the Department of General Medicine in the further development and implementation of the communication curriculum in the first two years of medical school. And from 2019 to 2024 he worked as a student assistant in the Division of Ethics in Medicine. His doctoral project was funded by the 'Dr. med. Excellence Programme', School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Oldenburg.
His research interests include medical and nursing ethics with a focus on aspects of justice theory and professional ethics. He is fascinated by the use of methodological approaches of qualitative social research for ethical investigations. In his fifth-year research, he investigated the moral problems of live-in-care for people with dementia. As a medical doctoral student, he is currently working on medical students' perceptions of racism in medicine as part of the SoDiMe project [GER]. He is particularly interested in the didactic transfer of professional ethical considerations into medical education.
Curriculum Vitae
| Since 04/2025 | Research Assistant in the Division for Ethics in medicine at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg | |
| 11/2024 | Licence to practice medicine - Graduation from School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Oldenburg | |
| Summer term 2023 | Dr. med. Excellence Programme, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Oldenburg | |
| 09/2019 - 08/2024 | Student assistant in the Division of Ethics in Medicine at the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg | |
| 2018-2020 | Student assistant and tutor for doctor-patient communication, School of Medicine and Health Sciences Oldenburg | |
| 2015 – 2016 | Propedeutic studies at Leibniz Kolleg in Tübingen | |
| 2014 – 2015 | „Weltwärts“ volunteering-service in India, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economical Cooperation and Develeopment |
Research Focus
- Professional ethics / medical education
- Social justice and health care
- Racism in medicine and health care
- Live-in-care
- Empirical-informed ethics
- Qualitative social research
Publications (selection)
Articles (Selection):
- Gerhards, Simon M.; Schweda, Mark (2024) How do medical students deal with the topic of racism? A qualitative analysis of group discussions in Germany. PLoS ONE 19(11): e0313614. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0313614
- Gerhards, Simon M.; Schweda, Mark; Weßel, Merle (2023): Medical students’ perspectives on racism
in medicine and healthcare in Germany: Identified problems and learning needs for medical
education. GMS Journal for Medical Education. 40(2), Doc22. https://doi.org/10.3205/zma001604
- Weßel, Merle, Gerhards, Simon M. (2023): "Discrimination is always intersectional" - Understanding
structural racism and teaching intersectionality in medical education in Germany. BMC Medical
Education, 23, Article 399. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-023-04386-y
- Gerhards, Simon; von Kutzleben, Milena; Schweda, Mark (2022): Moralische Probleme der
Versorgung von Menschen mit Demenz durch osteuropäische Live-in-Hilfen: eine ethische Analyse
der Erwartungen von Angehörigen in Onlineforen. Ethik in der Medizin. 34, 573-590.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00481-022-00708-8
Conference contributions (Selection):
- Gerhards, Simon; Weßel, Merle; Schweda, Mark (2023): Herausforderungen in der
Auseinandersetzung von Medizinstudierenden mit Rassismus in Medizin und Gesundheitsversorgung
– qualitative Exploration und Lösungsansätze für das Medizinstudium. Frühjahrestagung 2023
„Rassismus, Diskriminierung und Gesundheit” (DGS, DeZIM, DGMS), Berlin, 09.03.2023.
- Gerhards, Simon; Schweda, Mark; Weßel, Merle (2022): An exploration of medical students’ moral
perceptions of racism in medicine and healthcare in Germany: Empirically informed ethical analysis
and recommendations for medical education. 16. World Congress of Bioethics 2022, Basel,
22.07.2022.
- Gerhards, Simon; von Kutzleben, Milena; Schweda, Mark (2021): Moralische Probleme der live-in
Versorgung im Spiegel der enttäuschten Erwartungen von Angehörigen: eine ethische Analyse von
Beiträgen aus Onlineforen. Jahrestagung der Akademie für Ethik in der Medizin 2021, Online,
24.09.2021.
Year 5 research thesis:
- Gerhards, Simon (2020): Moralische Probleme des Einsatzes osteuropäischer live-in-Hilfen in der häuslichen Versorgung von Menschen mit Demenz – Qualitative Inhaltsanalyse und ethische Untersuchung von Angehörigenperspektiven in Onlineforen. Große Forschungsarbeit im Rahmen des Longitudinalen Forschungscurriculums im Modellstudiengang Medizin der Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg.