CFP: Ameliorating Epistemic Injustice in Healthcare

CFA

Ameliorating epistemic injustice in healthcare:
An EPIC conference

The Orangery, Royal Fort Gardens
University of Bristol, UK

4-5 March 2027

Abstract deadline: 1 December 2026

This conference – hosted by the Epistemic Injustice in Healthcare (EPIC) project – will explore and assess approaches to ameliorating epistemic injustice in healthcare.

Epistemic injustice in healthcare has become a large and vibrant interdisciplinary area of research over the past decade. Scholars have identified different types of epistemic injustice across a range of medical domains, institutions and healthcare interactions. These injustices have been linked to numerous factors, including but not limited to: racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, pathophobia, sanism, and neuro-chauvinism. Further factors include the health professional-patient relationship; naturalistic diagnostic and therapeutic paradigms; and the complexity of healthcare institutions, including their own internal hierarchies. These efforts have produced a comprehensive – though still incomplete – picture of the scope and shape of the problem. Comparatively little, however, has been written about how we might address it, or how to promote epistemic justice in healthcare.

This conference invites theoretical and empirical work on amelioration of epistemic injustice in healthcare and illness, welcoming submissions from researchers across disciplines, healthcare professionals, and experts by experience.

Possible topics include:

·         How to understand and enact epistemic justice in healthcare contexts

·         New approaches to ameliorating epistemic injustice across different illnesses and healthcare contexts

·         Developments and critical assessments of extant approaches to amelioration

·         How to tackle the specific drivers of epistemic injustice in healthcare (e.g. sanism and pathophobic prejudices, hermeneutical lacunae around illness and recovery)

Confirmed speakers:

• Lisa Bortolotti (Philosophy, Birmingham)
• Amandine Catala (Philosophy, Montreal)
• Gene Feder (Primary Care, Bristol)
• Anke Jahn (fmr Bueter) (Philosophy, Aarhus)
• Aidan McGlynn (Philosophy, Edinburgh)
• Rachel Power (UK Patients’ Association)
• Lucy Series (Policy Studies, Bristol)

Submission guidelines

We are looking for short, focused contributions (15 minutes + 5 minutes Q&A) specifically on ameliorating epistemic injustice in healthcare. No exposition of basic concepts in the epistemic injustice literature is needed. Please expect attendees to know what epistemic injustice is and tailor your abstract submission accordingly.

Please submit an abstract of 250-300 words to [email protected] by 1 December 2026.In your submission email, please attach a PDF with your abstract, name, affiliation, and a short bio – for you and, if applicable, any co-authors. We prefer speakers to present in person, but will consider requests to present online on a case-by-case basis.

We particularly welcome submissions from groups traditionally under-represented in academia. If you are a non-academic speaker, and would like to discuss submitting your application in a format different from the one outlined above, please feel free to email Dan (email above) to discuss how this might be done.

We will provide refreshments and lunch for all attendees, and all are welcome.

Travel bursaries

We will offer a small number of bursaries of £100 each toward travel costs for speakers who are unwaged, PhD students, or early career researchers who are not funded. If you are interested in applying for one of these bursaries, please mention this in your submission email.

Registration

Registration is free. Information about how to register will be circulated in January.

Important dates

• Abstract submission deadline: 1 December 2026
• Notification of acceptance: mid-December 2026
• Conference dates: 4-5 March 2027

Project EPIC is generously funded by Wellcome. For more information about the EPIC project, please visit our website: https://epistemicinjusticeinhealthcare.org/