(48) Joining forces: Interprofessional practice and ethics. Should ethics be siloed if our practice is not?

Abstract: Continuing education requirements exist in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and ethics for maintenance of certification in the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and, in some cases, state licensure. Though this speaks to their importance, it may be perceived that this knowledge is separate and distinct from other continuing education content or suggest that there is a minimum "dose" of education required. Attention to DEI and ethics are outlined within the Principles and Rules of ASHA's Code of Ethics (2016), as is the requirement to be competent in all areas of practice. Yet, we have specific requirements in just some of these areas. Perhaps a closer look is warranted.

DEI and ethicality are intertwined on a variety of levels. While there is no disputing the importance of knowledge and skills in these areas, one might question if their home belongs in this carved out space or, if given they should be woven into the discussion of most (perhaps all) continuing education content. After all, ethics and DEI have a role in most of what we do every day with the patients and families we serve from our youngest and most vulnerable infants through older adults. Considering other ASHA objectives, such as interprofessional collaborative practice (IPP), strive to un-silo our roles as speech pathologists and audiologists, should ethics (and DEI) education also have an immersive home within the conversation of how we evaluate and treat the spectrum of communication, hearing, and swallowing impairments?

Presented on behalf of ISHA's Ethics Education committee, this session will offer suggestions for building ethical content into our daily practice as professionals, leverage our teams for collaborating on challenging situations, and serve as instructors through modeling, mentorship, clinical supervision, and didactic teaching. We submit that some of this content may also apply to other areas of professional development, such as DEI.

Summary of Presentation : A potential disconnect exists between our personal sense of ethics and our organizational behavior requirements. Whereas our personal ethics may have roots in religion, family, and/or community, among others, and may vary from person to person, we come together as professionals and agree to adhere to a professional Code of Ethics. In Speech Language Pathology and Audiology, that code is set forth by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and/or the American Academy of Audiology. Similarly, as professionals come together in multi-professional organizations such as the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, professionals must align with both their discipline specific code and the organizational code.

Maintenance of CCC-A and/or CCC-SLP within ASHA requires professional development in the area of ethics for one hour each three-year cycle. A variety of topics are identified by ASHA in terms of the nature of qualifying coursework or objectives, but by having specific requirements for designated learning risks the sense of ethics being viewed as separate from other professional development. Developing content in the early years of the requirement many sessions focused on foundational knowledge related to "what is ethics?". Today, there are a vast array of courses focusing on various aspects of ethics and ethical decision-making. Continuing education in ethics is important but challenges exist with the potential for such training to been seen as more obligation than as useful as mastering new techniques for fluency, or treatment of dysphagia or apraxia. Ethics coursework may lack immediate application and practicality, potential "landmines" of controversial topics, and difficulty separating ethics from values which may make other entities seem more skilled to address (i.e., clergy, counselors, etc.) are but a few of these challenges (Niles, 2003). While we may become quite skilled at identifying ethical challenges, developing these skills is quite different.

ASHA's support of, and movement toward, interprofessional collaborative practice (IPP) opens the door to another lens through which we can view ethics education and training. ASHA is an organizational member of the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) which includes "values and ethics" as one of the four foundational pillars (IPEC, 2016). Since IPP, by definition, involves more than one profession, interorganizational values must be acknowledged and reliance on our team becomes more critical. Further, a team-based approach to ethical problem solving may help individuals feel more confident in addressing ethical dilemmas that may arise without feelings of isolation. If collaboration begets improved outcomes in clinical care, leveraging the collective power of the team may afford novel solutions that might otherwise not be identified.

This session will explore ethics and opportunities to augment education beyond the training model and infusion of ethics into our conversations. Ethical considerations within different populations will be explored as opportunities for expanding our view of ethics as it applies to daily practice. The IPEC sub-competencies in values and ethics will be discussed (IPEC, 2016).