Ethics curriculum for emergency medicine graduate medical education

Ethics education is an essential component of graduate medical education in emergency medicine. A sound understanding of principles of bioethics and a rational approach to ethical decision-making are imperative.

This article addresses ethics curriculum content, educational approaches, educational resources, and resident feedback and evaluation.

Ethics curriculum content should include elements suggested by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, and the Model of the Clinical Practice of Emergency Medicine. Essential ethics content includes ethical principles, the physician-patient relationship, patient autonomy, clinical issues, end-of-life decisions, justice, education in emergency medicine, research ethics, and professionalism.

The appropriate curriculum in ethics education in emergency medicine should include some of the content and educational approaches outlined in this article, although the optimal methods for meeting these educational goals may vary by institution.