Module 1 - Ethics: What is it and Why is it Important?
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This unique first video is narrated by philosopher and bioethicist Michael Stingl and features excerpts from interviews with the various course presenters responding to questions such as "what is ethics?", "what is the role of moral theory in clinical practice?" and "why should I be good?".
Case example:
On your way to an important job interview, you are walking by a lake and you see a little girl in a boat well on the other side of the water. Suddenly she falls in- you are about to act, but ask yourself "why should I?"
Speaker: Michael Stingl, Ph.D.
Module 2 - Duties or Consequences: Foundational Ideas
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This module will introduce duty-based and utilitarian normative theories, identify where these theories fit within the broader project of ethics, explore the fundamental differences between the two and how, if at all, these may be reconciled.
Case Example:
The lab results for your patient, an elderly women of Chinese descent, come back positive for cancer of the stomach. Her daughter regularly visits you to discuss her mother's care. She has indicated that if ever there is a serious health problem her mother is facing, it is critical that her mother not be told. Should you tell?
Speaker: Alister Browne, Ph.D.
Module 3 - Common Morality: A Principlist Approach
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This module will explore commonly accepted principles of bioethics (beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice), identify other principles that might belong to this group and identify the strengths and limitations of this approach.
Case Example
A 70 year old man suffering from mild dementia is adamant about walking on his own. You are concerned about his welfare (he has broken a hip in past) and that of the other residents. How should you deal with this?
Speaker: Robert M. Veatch, Ph.D.
Module 4 - Respect for Autonomy: A Closer Look
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This module will look closely at what is perhaps the most important of the principles of Western bioethics, review criticisms of this principle and offer a deeper understanding that responds to these criticisms.
Possible Case
An elderly man of fluctuating capacity lives alone with several pets in an unkept apartment that you feel is a risk to his health. He strongly rebukes you for your suggestions that he consider living in a nursing home. What should you do?
Speaker: James F. Childress, Ph.D.
Module 5 - On Being Good: Virtue Ethics
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This module will explain the role of virtue ethics in the modern bioethics debate, identify the question to which this approach is trying to respond, and explore the challenges it faces.
Case Example
A ten year-old girl is suffering kidney failure and needs a transplant. Her father is the only family member in a position to donate his organ, but is hesitant to do so. What should he do?
Speaker: Edmund D. Pellegrino, MD
Module 6 - Attending to Connections: Care Ethics
This module will focus on the role of caring and relationships in ethical decision-making in health care. It will introduce care ethics as an important addition to the history of bioethics, exploring the theory and situating it in the context of traditional moral theory.
Speaker: Nel Noddings, PhD
Module 7 - Ethics in a World of Difference: Challenges of Human Diversity
This module will explore ethical issues arising from the human diversity in society. It will focus on how some specific groups have been systematically/structurally subjugated and consider what responding to their valid claims on society might require.
Case Example
An Aboriginal Canadian speaks at the local regional health authority public meeting and demands better care for aboriginal people in Alberta. She points out that the average life span of a native Canadian is ten years less than that of non-aboriginals. What, if any, legitimate claims does this person have and on whom?
Speaker: Alice Dreger, PhD
Module 8 - In Need of a Map! Concepts and Frameworks in Ethical Decision-Making
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This module will explore concepts and processes in ethical decision-making. It will introduce the elements of positive group dynamics and consider various ways of sharing group deliberations with individuals at the bedside.
Case Example
An elderly woman has prepared an advance directive indicating only that she does not want any "extraordinary care" if she deteriorates significantly, but would want a feeding tube to be considered. A recent stroke has left her unable to eat by mouth. How do you begin to address the situation?
Speakers: Patricia Rodney, RN, MSN, Ph.D. &
Michael McDonald, Ph.D.
Module 9 - Issues at the End of Life: Caring Ethically
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This module will review end of life issues, including: withholding vs. withdrawing care, nutrition and hydration as treatment, euthanasia, the principle of double effect, palliative care, and advance directives. It will focus on the importance of shared understanding and communication of values.
Case Example
A palliative care patient request continued increases in pain medication dosages due to unbearable suffering. Her physician is concerned that the narcotic will cause respiratory distress and shorten the patient's possible life span. What should be done?
Speaker: Peter A. Singer, MD, MPH, FRCPC
Module 10 - Allocating Scarce Resources: Who Benefits? View video clip (Quicktime) View video clip (Windows Media)
This module will help identify the values implicit in various resource allocation approaches, identify a framework for resource allocation decision-making, and explore the values in tension between individual and group allocation decisions.
Case Example
A regional health board must decide how to spend a $5 million surplus. They must choose between opening more ER beds, increasing the list of insured health care services, and increasing the local school hot-lunch programs. How do they decide
Speaker: Robert M. Veatch, Ph.D.
This module will examine the notion of an organization's ethical culture, and explore the impact this might have on everything from interprofessional relationships, micro-level decision-making, and the quality and level of care that patients might receive.
Case Example
A woman suffering from a bone infection has been receiving care in hospital. She is well enough to be discharged to her home, but will have to pay for her own IV antibiotic care upon release. She refuses to be released saying that she cannot afford the treatment. Should she be discharged ?
Speaker: Nuala Kenny, O.C., M.D., FRCPC
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This module will review the possible objectives of clinical consultation, the various approaches to doing clinical consults and the benefits and drawbacks of an ethics committee taking on this role.
Possible Case
A 70 year-old woman has recently had a severe stroke and is being kept alive on a ventilator. Her four children are at odds as to what should be done. Her physician calls the ethics committee for a consult. How should the committee respond?
Speaker: Michael M. Burgess, Ph.D.
Final
In-Person WorkshopThe course will culminate in a full day, in-person workshop at the Coast Edmonton Plaza Hotel in Edmonton Alberta, on May 21, 2010 from 9 am - 4 pm. Attendance at this workshop is encouraged, but optional.
The workshop will delve deeper into the theory and practice of clinical ethics consultation. The day will be devoted to an exploration of the practical skills that
individuals and committees should and can develop in order to better facilitate
the ethics consultation process. This workshop will be facilitated by Bashir
Jiwani, Ethicist and Director of the Ethics Network with Fraser Health Authority
in British Columbia. It will expand on Michael Burgess' video presentation on
clinical ethics consults, giving participants the opportunity to practice skills
through role-playing, case discussion and review. The day will focus on the role
of culture in health system decision-making, the objectives of clinical ethics
consultations, the role of ethics theory in practical decision-making, and communication
and facilitation in the consult process. | 
