Neurophilosophy and Neuroethics

Dr. Michael Young is a neurologist and researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital and Associate Chief of Neurology at McLean Hospital. He completed an internal medicine internship at Massachusetts General Hospital followed by Neurology residency and fellowship at Mass General Brigham and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital specializing in longitudinal care of patients recovering from severe brain injuries and disorders of consciousness. His research examines ethical dimensions and philosophical frameworks underlying standards of care in medicine and neuroscience, and as a member of the Lab for NeuroImaging of Coma and Consciousness (NICC) and Center for Neurotechnology and Neurorecovery (CNTR), is devoted to improving clinical translation of novel neurotechnologies to detect, predict and improve recovery of consciousness in patients with neurologic disorders in settings of diagnostic and prognostic uncertainty. He has been recognized for his clinical and research expertise locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. He received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School with Honors, Magna Cum Laude, where he was awarded the Rose Seegal Award for Research, the Henry K. Beecher Prize in Medical Ethics, and the Neil Samuel Ghiso Fellowship for Compassionate Medical Care. In 2013-2014, he completed a Student Fellowship in the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, and was a Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at Harvard University. He is the recipient of an Early Career Scholar Award from the American Society of Bioethics & Humanities, as well as the Pollard Prize from the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics. In 2019, Dr. Young was selected as a member of the Academy of Neurology Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum, and in 2020 was selected as the recipient of the AAN H. Richard Tyler Award. In 2022, Dr. Young served as Co-Chair of the International Neuroethics Society conference committee, and in 2023 became Chair of the Coma Science Working Group (CSWG) 3.0 Module on Philosophy of Consciousness and Coma Science, of the Neurocritical Care Society Curing Coma Campaign. Prior to arriving at Harvard, Young completed an M.Phil in philosophy from the University of Cambridge as a Gates Cambridge Scholar, focusing on philosophical issues relating to medicine and the mind. His research is supported by the NIH BRAIN Initiative and American Academy of Neurology.