Descriptions of long-term impact from inter-professional ethics communication in groups.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Ethics
• Professional Development
• Inter-professional Collaboration

Background:

• Healthcare professionals frequently encounter ethical dilemmas.
• Clinical Ethics Support (CES) aids in addressing complex ethical issues.
• Limited literature exists on the long-term impact of inter-professional dialogue in CES.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the impact of Inter-professional Ethics Communication (IEC) groups after six months.
• To describe team members' experiences of IEC based on Habermas' theory of communicative actions.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative inductive approach utilizing individual interviews (n=13).
• Data analyzed using qualitative content analysis.
• Participants included nurses, physicians, therapists, welfare officers, and psychologists with at least four IEC sessions.

Main Results:

• Participants reported deepened and integrated ethical awareness.
• Increased awareness of ethically challenging situations and personal ethical reasoning.
• Enhanced team cohesion and supportive reflection for future ethical challenges.

Conclusions:

• Articulating thoughts in IEC stimulates reflection, leading to new insights.
• IEC outcomes include incorporated knowledge enabling actions in difficult ethical situations.
• Ethical awareness developed at both individual ('I-level') and team ('We-level') perspectives.