Student Group Details

Bioethics and Ethics - ALBA

MS0318

Course
Bioethics and Ethics - ALBA
Code
MS0318
Academic Year
2026/2027
Curriculum Year
2024/2025
Degree Programme
NURSING
Curriculum
000 - CORSO GENERICO
Course coordinator
Doriana MONTANI
Lecturers
Giancarlo MERCURIO
Credits
2
Lecture Hours
24
Scientific Disciplinary Sector (SSD)
MED/45 - General, Clinical and Pediatric Nursing
Course Type
Single-subject learning activity
Course Delivery
OBB - Obbligatoria
Year
3
Teaching period
Secondo Semestre
Campus
ALBA
Teaching language
Italian
Course Contents

Ethics and Professional Deontology

Reference Texts

Paola Gobbi, “Storie di persone, voci di infermieri. Un approccio innovativo allo studio della bioetica e deontologia” [Stories of People, Voices of Nurses: An Innovative Approach to the Study of Bioethics and Deontology], McGraw-Hill, 2020.

Roberta Sala, “Etica e bioetica per l’infermiere” [Ethics and Bioethics for the Nurse], Carocci e Faber, 7th edition, 2014.

FNOPI (National Federation of Nursing Professions Orders), Nursing Code of Ethics, 2025.

Learning Outcomes

The module aims to provide students with the foundational theoretical and methodological frameworks needed to develop a critical reflection on the ethical and bioethical dilemmas characterizing contemporary nursing practice. The course is designed to foster an understanding of the core values surrounding the protection of the patient's rights, dignity, and self-determination. By integrating general moral principles with the professional duties established by the Nurse's Code of Ethics, it prepares students to guide their daily care decisions responsibly and safely.

Prerequisites

none

Teaching Methods
Power Point presentation
Presentation of cases and situations with ethical implications
Watching movies
Group work
Additional Information

Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/servicesstudents-physical-or-learning-disabilities

Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

Assessment Methods
The learning test will be conducted in an integrated manner with the other disciplines pertaining to the integrated course of "Organization and Management of Care Processes." The test consists of 60 closed multiple-choice questions of which only one is correct and 2 open-ended questions
The Ethics and Bioethics part includes 12 closed questions in which knowledge will be assessed and 2 open questions in the form of a case, in which students will have to identify The ethically questionable behaviors enacted and apply The contents of the Code of Ethics.
The exam is considered passed if students correctly answers at least 60% of the closed questions for each discipline and expresses The required contents in the open questions. In this regard docents have formulated a specific correction grid.
If students achieves a total of 95% correct answers, he/she will be graded with 30/30, keeping the minimum threshold of 60% unchanged. If students does not exceed this threshold he/she repeats the exam in its entirety, taking the test again including questions from all disciplines. Students have 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete the test.
Detailed Syllabus
1.Principles of ethics and bioethics;
2. Bioethical issues of early life: predictive testing, law 40, objection, pre-term births
3. ethical aspects of gender medicine
4. Pharmacological experimentation on humans and animals;
5. The principle of self-determination and informed consent
6. Physical and pharmacological restraint
7. End of life: therapeutic obstinacy, advance directive for treatment (DAT), euthanasia
8. Ethics committees
9. Organ donation and transplantation
Expected Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and understanding:Know and distinguish the main theoretical models of ethics and bioethics applied to healthcare. Deeply understand the core articles and values of the current Nurse's Code of Ethics. Know the regulatory and ethical frameworks surrounding early life, end-of-life, informed consent, and clinical trials. Applying knowledge and understanding:Apply ethical principles and deontological rules to analyze complex, real-world clinical cases from the healthcare environment. Properly recognize and manage clinical scenarios related to informed consent, Advance Directives (DAT), and restraint minimization. Making judgements:Promptly identify ethically questionable or problematic behaviors within clinical settings. Develop a structured, autonomous moral judgment when facing ethical dilemmas, balancing beneficence with patient self-determination. Communication skills:Discuss and argue their ethical evaluations within a multidisciplinary team in a clear, respectful, and well-founded manner. Use appropriate, empathetic, and unbiased language when addressing values and choices with patients and their families.
Last update:16-09-2026 00:13:03