Blanton S1, Greenfield B1, Swisher LL2, Jensen G3, Kirsch N4, Davis C5, Purtilo R6
1Emory University, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Atlanta, United States, 2University of South Florida, School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tampa, United States, 3Creighton University, Graduate School and College of Professional Studies, Omaha, United States, 4Rutgers University, Department of Rehabilitation and Movement Sciences, Newark, United States, 5University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy, Miami, United States, 6MGH Institute of Health Professions, Ethics and Professional Studies, Boston, United States
Background: What is professionalism in physical therapy (PT)? How can educators use humanities to teach moral agency? How do we cultivate professional formation in PT education and across a clinician's life-time? These questions drew together a collaborative alliance of PT scholars to share and reflect, challenge and re-imagine, the potential of humanities to cultivate humanism in rehabilitation.
Purpose: The purpose is to describe a unique symposium - the Humanities and Ethics Alliance (HEAL), of academic leaders in humanities, ethics, interprofessional education and professionalism to explore interconnections of humanities and ethics in physical therapy. The goal was to generate innovative ideas to foster professionalism and ethically engaged clinicians in PT education and practice.
Methods: Using the landmark 2003 Interprofessional Conference “Dreamcatchers and the Common Good: Allied Health Leadership in Generational Health and Ethics” as a guide, thought leaders gathered at Emory University (Atlanta, United States) to reflect on the history of ethics in PT to ground discussion, generate probing questions, and to identify challenges and opportunities facing our profession. Individual “Profiles in Professionalism” interviews captured stories as models for professional formation. A formal panel discussion between the scholars provided a rich discussion of the evolution of ethical study and teaching in PT while providing opportunity for engagement with the clinical and student community.
Results: Discussions from the group will be used to develop a scholarly agenda guiding the application of a humanities-based scaffolding into PT education that builds innovative interdisciplinary connections. Illustrating the lessons from individual reflections and the importance of historical context, the “Profiles in Professionalism” interview series will be published along with the History of PT Ethics panel discussion in the Journal of Humanities in Rehabilitation as a multi-media scholarly archive for integration into classroom and post-professional education.
Conclusion(s): The Humanities and Ethics Alliance was an initial think-tank gathering to explore humanities as a potential lens for re-examining ethics and professionalism to better meet the societal and global needs of physical therapy.
Implications: Integration of humanities into PT education, research and practice offers a unique potential to broaden our notions of ethics, professional formation and interprofessional collaboration
Keywords: Humanities, Ethics, Professionalism
Funding acknowledgements: Emory University Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, and Emory Center for Digital Scholarship
Purpose: The purpose is to describe a unique symposium - the Humanities and Ethics Alliance (HEAL), of academic leaders in humanities, ethics, interprofessional education and professionalism to explore interconnections of humanities and ethics in physical therapy. The goal was to generate innovative ideas to foster professionalism and ethically engaged clinicians in PT education and practice.
Methods: Using the landmark 2003 Interprofessional Conference “Dreamcatchers and the Common Good: Allied Health Leadership in Generational Health and Ethics” as a guide, thought leaders gathered at Emory University (Atlanta, United States) to reflect on the history of ethics in PT to ground discussion, generate probing questions, and to identify challenges and opportunities facing our profession. Individual “Profiles in Professionalism” interviews captured stories as models for professional formation. A formal panel discussion between the scholars provided a rich discussion of the evolution of ethical study and teaching in PT while providing opportunity for engagement with the clinical and student community.
Results: Discussions from the group will be used to develop a scholarly agenda guiding the application of a humanities-based scaffolding into PT education that builds innovative interdisciplinary connections. Illustrating the lessons from individual reflections and the importance of historical context, the “Profiles in Professionalism” interview series will be published along with the History of PT Ethics panel discussion in the Journal of Humanities in Rehabilitation as a multi-media scholarly archive for integration into classroom and post-professional education.
Conclusion(s): The Humanities and Ethics Alliance was an initial think-tank gathering to explore humanities as a potential lens for re-examining ethics and professionalism to better meet the societal and global needs of physical therapy.
Implications: Integration of humanities into PT education, research and practice offers a unique potential to broaden our notions of ethics, professional formation and interprofessional collaboration
Keywords: Humanities, Ethics, Professionalism
Funding acknowledgements: Emory University Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, and Emory Center for Digital Scholarship
Topic: Professional issues; Professional issues
Ethics approval required: No
Institution: Emory University
Ethics committee: Emory University Internal Review Board
Reason not required: describes new educational and unique educational methods
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
