"ethics courses are yet to find their rightful place in the teaching of public health in India"

Indian J Med Ethics. 2014 Apr 11. [Epub ahead of print]

Teaching of public health ethics in India: a mapping exercise.

Pati S1, Sharma A2, Zodpey S3.

Author information

• 1Additional Professor, Indian Institute of Public Health, Bhubaneswar, Public Health Foundation of India, JSS Software Technology Park, Infocity Road, Patia, Bhubaneswar 751 024, Odisha INDIA Author for Correspondence: Sanghamitra Pati, e-mail: sanghamitra.pati@iiphb.org.
• 2Program Officer-Academics, Public Health Foundation of India, ISID, 4, Institutional Area, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110 070 INDIA.
• 3Director, Public Health Education, Public Health Foundation of India, ISID, 4, Institutional Area, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110 070 INDIA.

Abstract

Public health ethics has been receiving increasing attention in recent years. Frequently, public health practitioners have to confront complex decisions, with numerous and often conflicting ethical implications. The objective of this study was to obtain information on the teaching of public health ethics in India by making a detailed examination of the public health and community medicine curricula. The specific areas of interest included the content and structure of the courses and electives available to students. The results of this study indicate that ethics courses are yet to find their rightful place in the teaching of public health in India. The curricula vary across institutes in terms of the time and content devoted to the teaching of public health ethics. It is suggested that public health programmes in India develop and incorporate ethics courses so as to keep pace with the emerging challenges in the field. An interdisciplinary consortium should preferably be formed at the national level to take up this academic endeavour.