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Young researchers from Catholic universities around the world have called on healthcare institutions to recognise vulnerability as an essential part of the human experience and integral development.
Doctoral students from seven member universities of the Strategic Alliance of Catholic Research Universities (SACRU) joined leaders of Catholic institutions and healthcare for the whole-day seminar at ACU's Rome Campus on 7 April, 2025.
Led by Associate Professor David Kirchhoffer, director of the Queensland Bioethics Centre at ACU and chair of the SACRU Working Group on Vulnerability, the event coincided with the Jubilee for the Sick and the Healthcare Workers.
The working group, according to Dr Kirchhoffer, believes healthcare institutions and individual providers have "a moral imperative…to create spaces of trust where people can be vulnerable safely so as to enable their integral flourishing".
Dr Kirchhoffer said the SACRU Working Group on Vulnerability sought to actively engage young researchers on the importance of placing vulnerability at the centre of their work.
"This collaboration among doctoral students is the tangible expression of this commitment and provides a valuable opportunity for the exchange of ideas and best practices between academia, healthcare professionals, and institutional representatives," Dr Kirchhoffer said.
"Since the Covid-19 pandemic and the establishment of this Working Group, we have recognized the importance of placing vulnerability at the center of our reflection, within the framework of research conducted as Catholic universities."
In 2024, the SACRU Working Group on Vulnerability engaged with doctoral students, including Lachlan Green and Geetanjali Rogers from ACU, who are investigating various topics related to healthcare and ethics.
The students connected over virtual meetings to explore the intersection of vulnerability and healthcare from the perspective of their own research projects. This research includes vaccine trials in developing countries; physician assisted suicide; theologies of prenatal genetic testing; interreligious dialogue on healthcare in conflict zones; boundaries in environmental ethics; the history of monastic medicine; Aristotelian and Thomistic virtues; and social and ecological justice in residential aged care.
The virtual meetings culminated in the SACRU seminar in Rome where they presented their research results in a panel discussion.
ACU Vice-Chancellor and President of SACRU, Professor Zlatko Skrbis, said SACRU had eight working groups, including the working group on Vulnerability and HealthCare, in which member universities collaborated to produce high-quality research outcomes.
"The research collaboration across SACRU takes a global approach so we can maximise our impact on the societies and communities we serve," Professor Zlatko said.
"As a Catholic research universitiy, we are dedicated to fostering human flourishing through impactful research. Our leadership, exemplified by the SACRU Working Group on Vulnerability, focuses on the fulfillment of human dignity and the holistic growth of individuals and their communities."
Honoured guests at the SACRU event on 7 April included the Ambassador Designate to the Holy See, The Honourable Keith Pitt, and ACU Pro-Chancellor and Chair of the Board of Mercy Health Australia, Virginia Bourke.
Professor Pier Sandro Cocconcelli, Secretary General of SACRU and Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore said the panel affirmed the importance of placing human dignity at the centre of research.
"In a global context marked by deep inequalities and growing mistrust in science, today's panel demonstrates how academic research can once again place human dignity at the centre and make a concrete contribution to the common good," Professor Cocconcelli said.
"This initiative is even more meaningful in the wake of the Jubilee of the Sick and the Healthcare World. SACRU is committed to continuing to promote spaces for dialogue and collaboration, so that the next generation of scientists can face the great ethical and social challenges of our time with rigor, passion, and responsibility."
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