Ethics-Governance: Article: eMJA: Breen, Professional development and ethics for today's and tomorrow's doctors

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eMJA: Breen, Professional development and ethics for today's and tomorrow's doctors Editorial Professional development and ethics for today's and tomorrow's doctors There is no lack of ethical and professional challenges for doctors MJA 2001; 175: 183-184. In this issue of the Journal, Braunack-Mayer and colleagues present a manifesto for an ethics core curriculum for Australasian medical students.1 It is a position paper by teachers of ethics from most of the medical schools in Australasia. The authors wisely "offer" this curriculum framework and ask that it be a "living document, open to challenges . . .". Some will debate its contents, while others will debate whether an ethics curriculum should be delivered separately from other key areas of the curriculum needed to train new doctors. Both these debates will be more productive if the ethics curriculum is considered from other perspectives, which include context, continuity and challenges. Firstly, the context. There has been a quiet revolution taking place in medical education in Australia over the past 10 years, with origins traceable to the Doherty Report on medical education and the workforce,2 and encouraged and fostered by the medical schools accreditation system of the Australian Medical Council.3 Australia now has four medical schools with graduate-entry programs, and virtually all Australian and New Zealand schools have made significant changes to their curricula as they seek to train doctors to meet the needs of our society.4 Foremost among the changes has been the vertical integration of the theme of "professional and personal development", a domain that covers elements such as communication skills, professional attitudes, ethics, health law and issues of health and fitness to practise. The core ethics curriculum outlined by Braunack-Mayer et al should form part of this domain, and, if delivered effectively, may not be readily visible. Full Article: http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/175_04_200801/breen/breen.html


2006 Ethics-Governance.com