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Ethics and Professionalism for Regulated Health and Care Professionals

Course Content

1

Section 1: Introduction

  • 1.1 Why professionalism matters in Canadian healthcare

  • 1.2 The regulatory framework: national and provincial and territorial roles

  • 1.3 Professionalism as the foundation of trust

2

Section 2: Core Attributes

  • 2.1 Honesty, integrity, and transparency

  • 2.2 Accountability and responsibility

  • 2.3 Competence and lifelong learning (CPD)

  • 2.4 Respect, compassion, and cultural safety

  • 2.5 Professional boundaries and confidentiality

3

Section 3: Professionalism in Practice

  • 3.1 Communication and shared decision-making

  • 3.2 Teamwork and interprofessional collaboration

  • 3.3 Leadership and role-modelling

  • 3.4 Digital professionalism and social media use

4

Section 4: Challenges to Professionalism

  • 4.1 System pressures: workload, burnout, and resource constraints

  • 4.2 Managing conflicts of interest

  • 4.3 Responding to errors and duty of candour

  • 4.4 Maintaining professionalism in difficult interactions

5

Section 5: Breaches & Consequences

  • 5.1 Common breaches across healthcare professions

  • 5.2 How concerns are raised and investigated by regulators

  • 5.3 Possible outcomes of investigations

  • 5.4 The impact of breaches

6

Section 6: Reflection, Insight & Remediation

  • 6.1 Self-awareness as the foundation of professionalism

  • 6.2 Reflective practice as expected by Canadian regulators

  • 6.3 Demonstrating insight when standards are questioned

  • 6.4 Remediation pathways: CPD, supervision, mentorship, counselling, or practice changes

  • 6.5 How reflection and remediation protect the public and support professional growth