Related Experiment Videos
A data-generated basis for medical ethics education: categorizing issues experienced by students during clinical
R Bissonette1, R M O'Shea, M Horwitz
1Department of Family Medicine (DFM), State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences 14215, USA.
Summary
Medical students identified ethical concerns in clinical training, highlighting issues in care, communication, and professional norms. Findings suggest a need for ethics education to align with student experiences and address declining moral sensitivity during medical school.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Bioethics
- Professional Ethics
Background:
- Medical ethics education aims to instill professional values.
- Student experiences in clinical settings often present ethical dilemmas.
- Assessing student perceptions is crucial for refining ethics curricula.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an experience- and evidence-based approach to medical ethics education.
- To identify ethical issues encountered by medical students during clinical training.
- To inform curriculum development based on student-identified concerns.
Main Methods:
- Surveyed 628 sophomore and senior medical students at SUNY Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.
- Collected student-identified ethical incidents from clinical training.
- Analyzed and categorized responses using content analysis.
Main Results:
- 249 students responded, reporting issues in professional norms, intervention limits, colleague protection, patient respect, communication, and student boundaries.
- Lapses in care, communication, patient respect, and professional norms were most frequent.
- Seniors and earlier sophomores reported less on patient respect; seniors focused on intervention limits and resource allocation.
Conclusions:
- Differences in responses suggest a potential decline in moral sensitivity during medical education.
- Clinical teaching and faculty behavior may conflict with classroom ethics instruction.
- Medical ethics education should prioritize issues directly relevant to students' clinical experiences.