Profile
I'm Yves Saint James Aquino, a philosopher and physician with expertise in ethics of artificial intelligence, philosophy of medicine, bioethics, and ethics of cosmetic surgery. I am currently a postdoctoral research fellow at the Australian Centre for Health Engagement, Evidence and Values at the University of Wollongong (ACHEEV). I'm also a member of Wiser Healthcare, a research collaboration that aims to conduct research that will reduce overdiagnosis and overtreatment in Australia and around the world.
Expertise
Philosophy of medicine, empirical bioethics, applied ethics, medical humanities, ethics of cosmetic surgery, ethics of technology Email: yaquino[at]uow.edu.au
Program of research
1. Ethics of artificial intelligence in the context of health and well-being
This project addresses the ethical, legal, and social issues of using AI for healthcare applications (clinical medicine, public health, or research ethics). Ethical and social issues include risk of algorithmic bias, impact of AI on deskilling, the problem of explainability, and risk of overdiagnosis and overtreatment.
My interest in AI ethics extends to examining the philosophical and ethical implications of incorporating AI capabilities into beauty apps or image editing software.
2. Philosophy of ugliness
This project involves developing an innovative critique of body modification by focusing on the practice of pathologising ugliness in appearance-based medical and surgical specialties. My PhD project on critiquing the practice of pathologising ugliness complemented classical critiques of body modifications that are largely situated in feminist scholarship, with longstanding debates on whether body modifications are evidence of cultural and gendered oppression or opportunities for empowerment. My novel critique demonstrated that appearance-based medical and surgical specialties are employing medical rhetoric that frames unattractive features as pathological and requiring of surgical intervention.
3. Social justice and public health
My third body of work focuses on ways to incorporate social justice into health ethics, with particular focus on the impact of public health policies on groups marginalised based on race, gender or disability. For example, I discussed the ethical challenges of managing the monkeypox outbreak, particularly in ensuring that communication of risks of transmission does not contribute to stigma against men who have sex with men.
Education
2019 Doctor of Philosophy
Philosophy, Macquarie University ↗ , Sydney, Australia
Concentration: Philosophy of Medicine, Bioethics, Cosmetic Surgery
Thesis title: Pathologising Ugliness: An Ethical Critique of the Conflation of Health and Beauty in Cosmetic Surgery
Thesis Supervisors: Prof Wendy Rogers and Prof Jean-Philippe Deranty
2016 Master of Research
Philosophy, Macquarie University ↗, Sydney, Australia
Thesis title: “Big eye surgery”: Understanding the ethical implications of medicalising Asian features in cosmetic surgery
Concentration: Bioethics, Medical Sociology
Supervisor: Prof Wendy Rogers
High distinction (summa cum laude equivalent)
2014 Erasmus Mundus Master of Bioethics
KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium ↗; Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands ↗; University of Padua, Padua, Italy ↗
Thesis title: Borrowed beauty? Understanding identity in Asian facial cosmetic surgery
Supervisor: Prof Norbert Steinkamp (Radboud University; Catholic University of Applied Social Sciences, Berlin, Germany)
Summa cum laude
2009 Doctor of Medicine
University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital, Manila, Philippines ↗
Philippine physician license since 2009
2004 Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy
University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines ↗
Thesis title: Moral permissibility of same-sex marriage according to the Second Vatican Council
Supervisor: Prof Leonardo de Castro
Cum laude
Follow Yves on:
ResearchGate ↗
Academia.edu ↗
PhilPeople ↗
Linkedin ↗
Semantic Scholar ↗