Professionalism and quality care

This course presents contemporary principles for medical professionals with targeted ethical scenarios providing realistic experience practicing ethical behavior in the medical profession. Topics include a detailed explanation of the hallmarks of a professional, including the evolution of ethical behaviors in medical professions. Medical codes established throughout history, including the Hippocratic Oath, Declaration of Geneva and American Medical Association Code of Ethics, are examined. The American College of Radiology Code of Ethics and the American Association of Physicists in Medicine Code of Ethics are presented with examples of currently accepted ethical code frameworks that can be adapted into your practice.

Underlying all professional interactions are the principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice, as defined by the Belmont Report. This course highlights the importance of physician-physician and physician-patient interactions. Each of three scenarios incorporates the principles of beneficence and medical professionalism and presents an ethical challenge for key stakeholders in the scenario. An explanation of the ethical underpinnings is provided along with relevant details to assist in making ethical decisions.

In this course, you will explore the basics of personal behavior, peer review and contract negotiations with employers. You will gain a solid understanding of courtesy, unwavering honesty and personal responsibility in the workplace, illustrated through several real-life scenarios. The importance of peer review in preventing workplace bias and using peer review to promote effectiveness in practice is also covered. Learn contract negotiation basics and how to navigate ambiguous ethical situations through realistic scenarios.

Explore the application of principles and responsibilities as they relate to the Charter on Medical Professionalism. Established and currently accepted fundamental principles of medical professionalism are reviewed, including an outline of the ten commitments that must be adhered to in practice. The adoption of the Charter on Medical Professionalism by various professional organizations such as the American Board of Radiology is discussed. Real-life interactive ethical scenarios offer practice and include detailed explanations for each scenario outcome and most appropriate ethical course of action.

Medicine and scientific research have been influenced by secondary interests, such as financial or other incentives, inconsistent with the ethical practice of medicine. Learn to recognize and adequately address conflicts of interest through realistic scenarios that may occur between physicians, scientists and the broader health care community. Familiarize yourself with accepted ethical codes of conduct for physicians and other health care professionals, including those from the American Medical Association, Radiological Society of North America, American College of Radiology, Health Physics Society, Declaration of Geneva and the World Medical Association Code of Medical Ethics.

Delve into topics surrounding ethics of research and publication in this comprehensive course. Covering issues such as research with animals and human participants, this course will walk users through a variety of ethical scenarios related to ethical behavior during clinical research. Learn about data falsification, data fabrication, and plagiarism as important concepts to be avoided during the acquisition of research data. Additional information about proper data management and secure data storage is provided, with an emphasis on ownership of research data performed in an institutional setting. Several “Test your Knowledge” questions throughout the course will help you understand and apply ethical principles to everyday situations that you may encounter during clinical research.

Human subject research has been a hotly debated topic for decades. Learn the history of human subject research and how events led to current ethical guidelines. True-to-life graphic scenarios explore the roles of the clinician versus the researcher. You will learn the crucial components required for the ethical performance of research involving humans, including the roles the Institutional Review Board and governmental agencies play.

Understand the principles of ethical relationships with vendors, the ethical underpinnings of financial conflicts of interest in such relationships, and codes of conduct established by government, institutions and professional organizations to guide appropriate and professional behavior. You will also learn guidelines for ethical etiquette in cases of vendor-sponsored research, conflict of interest and public disclosure of financial relationships with vendors.

Familiarize yourself with major ethical considerations related to the use of vertebrate animals in clinical and academic research. With an extensive review of historical religious and moral viewpoints, you will better understand the history of human thought regarding animal testing. You will also learn about the rights and protection of research animals, including an introduction to the various animal rights and welfare organizations that advocate for animal rights. An overview of the current ethical climate will help you understand some of the key ethical questions that arise during vertebrate animal research.

Learn about the framework currently accepted as appropriate practice by the biomedical research community, which applies to all practitioners in medicine, including those in the fields of diagnostic radiology, radiologic physics and radiation oncology. Review the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors' criteria for authorship assignment, including realistic case scenarios illustrating inappropriate, guest- and gift-authorship. Understand the characteristics of a transparent peer review process, as well as responsibilities of reviewers, editors, and authors. Learn how to avoid duplicate manuscript submission and publication, including common mistakes, consequences and secondary publication. Review the definitions and forms of plagiarism according to various governing bodies.

This course reviews ethical concepts and principles within the context of graduate and resident education in radiology, radiation oncology, and medical physics. Explore educational relationships among teachers, students, administrators, staff and others through realistic scenarios that provide guidance on ethical decisions in the education setting.