Biography

Johan Bester is an expert on ethical aspects of vaccinations, bioethics, medical education, and pediatric ethics. Bester has studied issues around vaccination ethics and policy, including informed consent, moral decision making and public health ethics. Bester's research specialties include clinical ethics practice, bioethical analysis, and ethics of vaccinations with an emphasis on the measles vaccination.

A former physician, Bester completed medical training in South Africa, and practiced family and emergency medicine for 12 years in a variety of settings, including South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Prior to joining the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV, Bester was a clinical assistant professor at the University of Calgary, where he developed and delivered ethics curriculum and workshops. In 2016, Bester completed a year of fellowship training in clinical ethics at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, and spent an additional year on staff as a clinical ethicist. He taught bioethics in the medical school and medical center, engaged in bioethics scholarship and publication, and provided ethics consultations. 

Bester's research has been published in the Journal of Bioethical Inquiry, JAMA Pediatrics, AMA Journal of Ethics, and the American Journal of Bioethics, among others.