Pilot Study: The Role of Predeployment Ethics Training, Professional Ethics, and Religious Values on Naval Physicians' Ethical Decision Making

• Published in: Military medicine 2016-08, Vol.181 (8), p.786-792
• Main Authors: Gaidry, Alicia D, Hoehner, Paul J
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0026-4075; 1930-613X
• DOI: 10.7205/MILMED-D-15-00104

Military physicians serving overseas in cross-cultural settings face the challenge of meeting patients' needs and adhering to their personal and professional ethics while abiding by military obligations and duties. Predeployment ethics training for Naval physicians continues to be received in many forms, if received at all, and has largely not addressed their specific roles as medical providers in the military. This study explores the perceived effectiveness of predeployment ethics training received by Naval physicians. Additionally, it considers the contribution of different types of ethics training, religious values, and the professional ethics on Naval physicians' perceived ability to effectively manage ethically challenging scenarios while on deployment. A total of 49 Naval physicians participated in an online survey. 16.3% reported not receiving any form of ethics training before deployment. Of those that reported receiving ethics training before deployment, 92.7% found the ethics training received was helpful in some way while on deployment. While a medical school course was most contributory overall to their ability to handle ethically difficult situations while on deployment (70.7%), what most Naval physicians felt would help them better handle these types of situations would be a mandatory military training/military course (63.2%) or personal mentorship (57.9%).