Essential Topics in Clinical Ethics (ETCE)
ETCE is organized by CENTRES
Overview
An intermediate-level short course designed for clinical ethics committee (CEC) members and healthcare professionals. The programme comprises 4 Units delivered through short online video lectures followed by synchronous, facilitated case discussions conducted live via Zoom.
Unit 1: Ethical reasoning, ethical guidance & relationship with professionals
Unit 2: Autonomy, informed consent, truth telling, decision-making capacity and best interests
Unit 3: Shared decision-making, end of life decision-making, advance care planning and nonbeneficial treatment
Unit 4: Health law, defensive medicine and therapeutic innovations
Educators
Assoc. Prof Brian D. Earp
Associate Professor
CBmE, NUS
Harisan Unais Nasir
Research Assistant Professor
CBmE, NUS
Mathavi Senguttuvan
Research Associate
CBmE, NUS
Dr Chan Mei Yoke
Adjunct Associate Professor
CBmE, NUS
Assoc. Prof Michael Dunn
Associate Professor
CBmE, NUS
Dr Neeta Satku
Adjunct Senior Lecturer
CBmE, NUS
Asst. Prof Owen Schaefer
Assistant Professor
CBmE, NUS
Registration
By invitation only.
Continuing Professional Education
All participating doctors, nurses, and pharmacists are eligible for 2 MME CME/CPE points respectively per unit.
Mode
• Asynchronous learning will be delivered on Canvas and may be viewed within a 2 week window before the synchronous case discussions.
• Synchronous sessions will be conducted on Zoom.
Course Structure
The series consists of four units. Participants may choose to attend one or more units.
Unit 1 - Ethical reasoning, ethical guidance & relationship with professionals
Duration:
2.00pm to 5.00pm | 22 July 2026 (Wednesday)
Learning objective:
To understand principle-based approaches to ethical issues in healthcare practice.
Topics covered:
- Approaches to moral reasoning
- Relationship between moral, ethical, legal and professional responsibilities
- Professional codes of ethics and guidance documents
- Relationship between law and ethics and process at ethics
- Resources for understanding & interpreting cultural and faith communities
Target audience:
Healthcare professionals and clinical ethics committee (CEC) members, who are new to or would like to refresh their knowledge and understanding of ethical reasoning, ethical guidance and relationship with professionals.
Unit 2 - Elements of decision-making (Part 1): autonomy, informed consent, truth telling, decision-making capacity and best interests
Duration:
2.00pm to 5.00pm | 29 July 2026 (Wednesday)
Learning objective:
To understand some of the common ethical and legal issues faced by healthcare professionals regarding patient autonomy, informed consent, truth telling, decision-making and best interests.
Topics covered:
- Autonomy, informed consent and refusal
- Disclosure, medical errors and truth telling
- Proxy decision-making, substituted judgment and best interests
- Decision-making capacity
Target audience:
Healthcare professionals and clinical ethics committee (CEC) members, who are new to or would like to refresh their knowledge and understanding of autonomy, informed consent, truth telling, decision-making and best interests.
Unit 3 - Elements of decision-making (Part 2): shared decision-making, end of life decision-making, advance care planning and non-beneficial treatment
Duration:
2.00pm to 5.00pm | 5 Aug 2026 (Wednesday)
Learning objective:
To understand some of the common ethical and legal issues faced by healthcare professionals, regarding shared decision-making, end of life decision-making, advance care planning and non-beneficial treatment.
Topics covered:
- Advance care planning
- End of life decision-making
- Shared decision making
- Potentially inappropriate treatment / futility
- Treatment goals and the related plan of care
Target audience:
Healthcare professionals and clinical ethics committee (CEC) members, who are new to or would like to refresh their knowledge and understanding of shared decision-making, end of life decision-making, advance care planning and non-beneficial treatment.
Unit 4 - Health law, defensive medicine and therapeutic innovations
Duration:
2.00pm to 5.00pm | 12 Aug 2026 (Wednesday)
Learning objective:
To understand relevant health law and some of the common ethical and legal issues faced by healthcare professionals regarding defensive medicine and therapeutic innovations.
Topics covered:
- Relevant health law
- Confidentiality and privacy
- Distinctions between clinical research and therapeutic innovation
- Defensive medicine
Target audience:
Healthcare professionals and clinical ethics committee (CEC) members, who are new to or would like to refresh their knowledge and understanding of health law, defensive medicine and therapeutic innovations.