E11: Ethical Choices

Black and white artistic text with checkboxes featuring 'YES' and 'NO' in bold typography style.

Course Overview

CE Hours

3 CE Credits

Course Description

Ethical Choices examines the foundational concepts and frameworks used to navigate ethical decision-making in health care and professional settings. This course explores the three types of ethical statements, key presuppositions in ethics, the HF2 Values Model of imperatives (Help, Fairness, Freedom, and Honesty), and the four-step Ethical Reasoning Model using EndRight, RuleRight, CareRight, and MidRight frameworks. Learners will apply these concepts through case studies and a practical decision-making worksheet to strengthen their ethical reasoning in daily professional life.

Course Learning Objectives

At the end of this course, learners will be able to:

  1. Distinguish between definition, factual, and value-based statements and explain their role in ethical reasoning
  2. Describe the gray area of ethics and explain how personal ethics interacts with law and behavior
  3. Identify the key presuppositions that underlie ethical reasoning
  4. Describe the four imperatives of the HF2 Values Model — Help, Fairness, Freedom, and Honesty — and explain their opposites
  5. Explain the difference between consequential (EndRight) and deontological (RuleRight and CareRight) ethical reasoning
  6. Apply the four-step Ethical Reasoning Model to analyze ethical dilemmas
  7. Use the Ethical Decision Making Worksheet to evaluate choices using EndRight, RuleRight, and CareRight filters
  8. Apply ethical reasoning frameworks to real-world case studies in health care and professional settings

Course Format and Faculty

Course Format:

Online linked resources and lectures available anytime, 24/7. Includes one multiple-choice exam taken at the end of the course. A passing grade of 75% is required. Upon passing, learners may print their certificate immediately.

Course Developers and Instructors:

R. Klimes, PhD, MPH (Johns Hopkins University) is a scholar and author in health-related research, health behaviors, ethics, end-of-life care, and overall wellness. He has written numerous research reports and books and has held academic and leadership roles in higher education and public health internationally.

Course Time:

Approximately 3 hours for online study, test taking, course evaluation feedback, and certificate printing.