Teaching ethics in a Masters Program in Public Health in Lithuania

Abstract

This article aims to present 10 years of experience of teaching ethics in a Masters Program in Public Health in Lithuania, and to discuss the content, skills, teaching approach and tools of this programme. In addition, the article analyses the links between ethics and law, identifies the challenges of the teaching process and suggests future teaching strategies. The important role of teaching ethics in countries that are in transition owing to a radically changing value system is emphasised.

Ethics education in public health: where are we now and where are we going?

“…This is not surprising, however, when one recognizes that ethics was first introduced in US public health programs in the 1970s, as compared to the 1980s in Europe (Have et al 2005). Nevertheless, interest in PHE in Europe has been growing since the early 1990s (Jakusovaite and Bankauskaite 2007), and so from the limited data available, it appears that current requirements for explicit ethics content in public health education are approximately equivalent in Europe and the US.…”

“…In some programs, as in Lithuania, the starting point for ethics education is ethical theory, with a top-down approach, where practical issues anchor and illustrate the theoretical framework (Jakusovaite and Bankauskaite 2007). Alternatively, some suggest offering Ba program that deals specifically and exclusively with the unique challenges presented by public health.^ (Klugman 2008: 61) Modell and Citrin (2002) provide a detailed example of how an ethics course dealing with specific issues can be taught.…”

“…For example, ethics education in public health programs can be taught through the use of ethical theories, such as utilitarianism and deontology, or through the use of key themes, such as the allocation of resources in healthcare, disease or injury surveillance and prevention, research ethics, law and ethics, or health and human rights (Dawson and Upshur 2013;Jakusovaite and Bankauskaite 2007;Lee et al 2013). Ethics can also be taught based on practical problems by using, for example, case studies related to different themes.…”

“…But others see PHE as going beyond problem solving skills or an analysis of the tensions between the needs of individuals and society (Bluestone 1976), arguing that it can operate at both procedural (problem solving) and cognitive levels, and be the basis for integrating systematic reflection and the development of ethical sensitivity (Aceijas et al 2012;Have et al 2005). Some authors have even suggested that ethics education enhances the moral character of students (Jakusovaite and Bankauskaite 2007), although others continue to argue that ethics training does not necessarily make students behave morally (Kanekar and Bitto 2012). While this question may not be easily resolved, the continued development and expansion of ethics curricula should encourage consideration of the goals underlying ethics instruction.…”

“…Two publications in the early 2000s describe European educators' experiences with teaching ethics in master's programs in SPH. The first, from Croatia, presents the implementation of a BHealth, human rights and ethics^master's program in 2005 (Have et al 2005); the second, from Lithuania, recounts a 10-year experience of ethics teaching, noting that in 2007 there was no such content in public health programs in Latvia, while Estonia and Poland had only just begun introducing ethics content (Jakusovaite and Bankauskaite 2007). This latter article mainly discusses ethics education in public health in the transitional context (towards a democracy and marketoriented society) of Lithuania, which had to deal with important social changes.…”