Abstract
Clinical medicine and biotechnology increasingly utilise and transform human bodily tissues in novel ways. Today more and more tissues--blood, whole organs, ova, embryos, sperm, skin, bone, heart valves, cellular material, bone marrow and corneas--can be transferred between donors and recipients. Hence more and more people in developed nations have the experience of giving a fragment of their body to another, or receiving such a fragment as part of some kind of therapy. These systems for the circulation of tissues raise the question of what we have termed 'bioidentity'. Bioidentity describes our common-sense understanding of our bodies as 'ours', as both supporting and being included in our social and subjective identities. Within this framework, how are we to understand the status of detachable bodily fragments like blood, ova or organs? As parts of our bodies do they retain a trace of our identity after donation, or are they detachable things? What is our relationship, if any, to the patient who receives our tissues as part of their treatment? This paper investigates the specific case of blood transfusion and donation. It draws upon in depth interviews with 55 people who have specific experience with blood. They either have h...Continue Reading
References
Nov 1, 1978·Nursing·B Keeling
Mar 1, 1996·Transfusion·M E Parker
May 4, 1996·BMJ : British Medical Journal·P Howden-ChapmanN Woods
May 12, 2000·BMJ : British Medical Journal·A Legge
Aug 29, 2000·Transfusion·M L FinucaneC K Mertz
May 25, 2001·Transfusion Medicine·D Starr
May 25, 2001·Transfusion Medicine·H G Klein
Jun 24, 2005·Science As Culture·Richard Tutton
Citations
Jan 6, 2012·Health Policy·Laura L MachinDanae McLeod
Feb 27, 2007·Transfusion·Dominique GrassineauJacques Chiaroni
Jul 19, 2011·Transfusion Medicine·J Koster, O W Hassall
Oct 3, 2006·Social Science & Medicine·Jeannette GoldenJean-Benoit Hardouin
Jan 19, 2008·Social Science & Medicine·Tim RhodesSarah Bernays
Jun 9, 2015·PloS One·Chris PattersonShona Hilton
Jun 21, 2016·Anthropology & Medicine·Małgorzata Rajtar
May 11, 2013·Culture, Health & Sexuality·Jessica DattaAnthony Kessel
Jun 23, 2015·Body & Society·Julie Kent, Anne-Maree Farrell
Feb 8, 2007·Journal of Health Psychology·Rebecca Sutton, Carla Treloar
Dec 4, 2004·Journal of Health Psychology·Carla Treloar
Jun 20, 2007·Public Understanding of Science·Aaro Tupasela
Mar 25, 2018·Sociology of Health & Illness·Leah Gilman
Sep 30, 2008·Addiction·Tim Rhodes, Carla Treloar
Dec 15, 2019·Transfusion·Barbara M MasserUNKNOWN Biomedical Excellence for Safer Transfusion (BEST) Collaborative
Aug 15, 2018·Sociology of Health & Illness·Julie KentSally Dowling
Jun 12, 2018·Genetics in Medicine : Official Journal of the American College of Medical Genetics·Sandra S-J LeeDavid Magnus
Apr 8, 2021·Vox Sanguinis·Matteo BolcatoAnna Aprile