Certification Task Force
Certification of specialists in ethical counselling within the healthcare sector
Forms of ethical counselling and support have been in place within the Swiss healthcare system for several decades. Ethical structures are now institutionalised in more than half of all hospitals. Despite the indispensability of this important service, there is still no structured and coordinated programme in Switzerland for the certification of specialists in ethical counselling. Such a programme would not only improve the quality of ethical counselling in the healthcare sector, but also enhance equity of access to these services.
The Swiss Society for Biomedical Ethics (SGBE), as the relevant national professional body, has therefore set up a task force to develop a standardised, competence-based training curriculum and a pragmatic certification model. Inspiration for this task has been drawn from Germany and the USA, which successfully established a training and certification programme for clinical ethics several years ago. The voluntary task force comprises experts in ethics counselling and adult education within the healthcare sector, drawn from various professions and recruited from across Switzerland. The SGBE’s General Assembly has endorsed the task force established by the Executive Board.
The task force has been in operation since 18 September 2023. Its aim is to present a certification model for ethical counselling in the Swiss healthcare sector within one to two years. An initial draft will be put out for broad consultation.
An interim report on the progress of the work as at September 2024 can be found here.
Members of the Task Force
Prof. Dr Dr Ralf Jox, Centre hospitalier universitaire vaudois, Lausanne (Chair)
Dr Heidi Albisser Schleger, University of Basel
Dr Christof Arn, freelance ethicist, Scharans
Gaby Bracher, MAS, Swiss Association of Occupational Therapists, Bern
PD Dr Marta Fadda, Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano
Dr Andreas Fischer, Lucerne Cantonal Hospital
Dr Oswald Hasselmann, St Gallen Children’s Hospital
Dr Markus Hofer, Winterthur Cantonal Hospital
Prof. Dr Samia Hurst, University of Geneva
Isabelle Karzig, RN, MAE, MScN, University Hospital Zurich
Muriel Keller, Zurich University of Applied Sciences
Prof. Dr Tanja Krones, University Hospital of Zurich
Prof. Dr Settimio Monteverde, University Hospital of Zurich
Prof. Dr Rouven Porz, Inselspital Bern
Simone Romagnoli, MER, Haute École Spécialisée de Suisse occidentale, Geneva
Dr Hannah Schmieg, Lucerne Cantonal Hospital
Dr Jan Schürmann, University Hospital Basel
PD Dr Annina Seiler, University Hospital Zurich
PD Dr Jürg Streuli, IBME, University of Zurich
The composition of the task force varies depending on the remit and the availability of interested parties.
Consultation
The Certification Task Force has drawn up a draft curriculum designed to support those who work, or wish to work, in the field of ethical support within the healthcare sector.
This curriculum is now open for consultation.
Your feedback is of great value to us: it will help us to design a curriculum that meets the current and future needs of clinical ethics in Switzerland.
Further details on the consultation can be found in the following documents: