Description of a skills oriented health ethics program.

Area of Science:

• Medical Ethics
• Ethics Education

Background:

• Continuous change necessitates ethics education focused on developing adaptive competencies.
• Critical ethical thinking is crucial for addressing evolving ethical issues in professional practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel two-component model for ethics education.
• To enhance the development of critical ethical thinking skills in students.

Main Methods:

• A two-semester hour course in ethical theory, emphasizing hypothetical and revisionist aspects of theory.
• A one-semester hour course in health ethics serving as a practical 'laboratory' for applying theory to real-world dilemmas.
• Students apply and refine ethical theory to find and defend solutions to ethical dilemmas.

Main Results:

• The model integrates theoretical knowledge with practical application in health ethics.
• Student skill development is fostered through direct engagement with ethical cases.
• External evaluations consistently highlight the value of combining case involvement with theoretical exposure.

Conclusions:

• The developed model effectively enhances critical ethical thinking by integrating theory and practice.
• This approach is valuable for preparing students to address complex and changing ethical issues, particularly in pharmacy and healthcare.
• Ongoing evaluation confirms the model's efficacy in fostering practical ethical reasoning skills.