EthCo’s transnational consortium of healthcare professionals was formed already in 2021 to develop ethical safety in future healthcare environments. The EthCo project aimed to strengthen ethical competence in healthcare education and practice through innovative, accessible solutions. Our objectives were to: - Identify and prioritize ethical challenges faced by healthcare professionals and students. - Develop and pilot new learning practices, including Ethics Coaching, Ethical Coffee Room discussions, and simulation scenarios, to bridge theory and practice, and to empower participants to act as ethical coaches, promoting ethical safety and resilience in workplaces. - Create the EthCo Tool, an open-access digital platform offering structured ethics education resources for higher education institutions and healthcare organizations. - Disseminate the results effectively, to foster transnational collaboration to ensure adaptability and sustainability of these practices across diverse contexts. By achieving these goals, EthCo sought to embed ethics as a core competence, reduce moral distress, and cultivate a culture of ethical awareness in healthcare environments.
The EthCo project was initiated to tackle critical gaps in ethical competence among healthcare professionals and students across Europe. Rapidly evolving healthcare environments, digitalization, and complex patient cases have increased ethical challenges, yet education and workplace practices often lack structured support for ethical decision-making. Discussions and research revealed a need for harmonized ethics education and practical tools to strengthen ethical safety for both professionals and patients. EthCo responded by creating innovative educational interventions, such as Ethics Coaching, Ethical Coffee Room discussion structures, and simulation scenarios, combined with a digital learning platform - EthCo Tool comprising digital eHandbook for educators and open access materials in EthCo website - to ensure accessibility and sustainability. By empowering professionals to act as ethics coaches, the project aimed to address competence disparities, foster resilience against moral distress, and promote a culture of ethical awareness in healthcare organizations.