Design elements of professional ethics courses

Area of Science:

• Optometry
• Medical Education
• Professional Ethics

Background:

• Optometrists regularly face ethical dilemmas, with students experiencing unique challenges.
• Increased scope of practice, societal demands for accountability, and interprofessional conflicts heighten the need for ethics education.
• These factors have prompted the expansion of professional ethics courses in optometry programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the complexities of defining professional ethics in optometry.
• To analyze the challenges associated with designing effective ethics courses for optometry students.
• To explore curricular issues relevant to optometric ethics education.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing research, particularly from medical education.
• Analysis of curricular components including objectives, content, and teaching strategies.
• Examination of student assessment and resource implications for ethics courses.

Main Results:

• Defining professional ethics and designing relevant courses present significant difficulties.
• Curricular elements such as objectives, instructors, content, and evaluation require careful consideration.
• The learning process for approaching ethical dilemmas in optometry can mirror that in medicine.

Conclusions:

• Effective optometric ethics education requires addressing inherent definitional and curricular challenges.
• Adapting successful pedagogical approaches from medical ethics education is a viable strategy.
• Developing robust ethics training is crucial for preparing competent and accountable optometrists.