Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care
Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care
Twice a year – typically March and December – we offer a one or two day short course in the ethics of perioperative care. Faculty for both days varies according to availability each time the course is offered but always includes Deakin Bioethics team members as well as Australian and sometimes international ethicists and clinicians. For information about past faculty members as well as feedback on the course from previous participants please see below.
Registration is now open for Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care (Part 1) which will be held Tuesday 1st April 2025 at Deakin’s Corporate Centre in Melbourne. To register click here.
Part 1 and Part 2 of the course will be offered 8-9 December 2025 at Deakin’s Corporate Centre in Melbourne.
Tickets for both parts of the Perioperative Care course are inclusive of course materials and refreshments (coffee, morning & afternoon tea, lunch).
All attendees receive a certificate of completion, identifying the number of CPD hours for the each day of the course.
Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care Part 1
Inaugurated in 2019, this one day course has been designed by Deakin Bioethics in collaboration with clinicians involved in perioperative care. Participants explore recent developments and debates in clinical ethics, with a focus on common challenges for those working in perioperative care.
Providing a practical introduction to ethical decision-making, the course facilitates learning through the use of case studies and interprofessional, facilitated small group discussions.
Part 1 is a standalone course. Participants have the option of completing Part 2 immediately following Part 1, or can take Part 2 at a later date if they choose.
For information about the program and to register for the current course, please visit our Eventbrite page or contact us at [email protected].
Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care Part 2
Building on the foundations established in Part 1 of the Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care course, Part 2 offers participants the opportunity to further develop their knowledge and skills in clinical ethics in the context of perioperative care. Participants explore recent developments and debates in clinical ethics, with a focus on complex ethical challenges for those working in perioperative care.
It is recommended that only those who have previously completed Part 1 of the course undertake Part 2.
For information about the program for Part 2 and to register for the current course, please visit our Eventbrite page or contact us at [email protected].
The course is led by Prof Dominique Martin, MBBS, BA(Hons), PhD
- Dominique is head of the Ethics, Law and Professionalism team in Deakin’s School of Medicine. She is an international leader in donation and transplantation ethics and a former medical practitioner with experience working in clinical ethics at the policy and institutional levels. Dominique has previously served as a consultant to the World Health Organization, the Australian Organ and Tissue Authority and the Qatar Organ Donation Center.
Past faculty involved in the Clinical Ethics: Perioperative Care program include:
- Dr Emma Tumilty, PhD
Emma is an Assistant Professor and Program Director in the Department of Bioethics and Health Humanities at University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, Texas. She is also a clinical ethics consultant in the UTMB Health System and a member of the UTMB Institutional Ethics Committee. Emma works closely with community to address ethical issues in healthcare and research through work with local organizations and in her role as Chair of the Research, Education and Community Health Coalition in Galveston. - Prof. Jeffrey S. Farroni JD, PhD
Jeffrey is Director of the Institutional Ethics Program in the Department of Bioethics & Health Humanities at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, Texas. He leads both the Clinical and Research Ethics Consultation Services, the Institutional Ethics Committee, and Integrated Ethics Program. He is also an active participant in UTMB’s Resiliency in Stressful Events Taskforce to address issues of wellness, self-care, burnout, and compassion fatigue. - Dr Andrew Martin, MBBS, FANZCA
Andrew is an anaesthetist with a strong interest in the development of perioperative clinical ethics. He co-led the development of the Perioperative Ethics short course and completed the Clinical Bioethics course at Harvard University in 2019. - A/Prof Marisa Herson, MD, PhD
Marisa is an Honorary Associate Professor in Bioethics and Professionalism at Deakin University School of Medicine. She has a background in plastic surgery and tissue banking and has worked on ethical and technical aspects of tissue banking and transplantation in collaboration with the World Health Organisation. - Dr Tim Haydon, FRACP, FCICM, FANZCA, M Bioethics
Tim is an Intensive Care Physician and Anaesthetist. He is Director of ICU at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne. He recently completed the Master of Bioethics through the University of Sydney and is the current Chair of the St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne Clinical Ethics Committee. - Ms Candice McKenzie, B Ed, MPH
Candice is the Director of Aboriginal Health at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. She has a background in medical education and has longstanding interests in the development of Indigenous health ethics and training. - Dr Rohit D’Costa, MBBS, FRACP, FCICM, M BioethicsRohit is an intensive care specialist at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Medical Director at DonateLife Victoria. He has an interest in clinical ethics, having recently completed a Master of Bioethics. Rohit sits on the Australian & New Zealand Intensive Care Society – Death and Organ Donation Committee. He’s also Chair of the Clinical Governance Committee – Lions Eye Donation Service, and a member of the Organ and Tissue Authority’s Transplant Advisory Group.
- A/Prof Stefan C. Kane MBBS BA BMedSc PhD FRANZCOG CMFM DDU(O&G)Stefan is a maternal fetal medicine subspecialist at the Royal Women’s Hospital in Melbourne, where he is Medical Director of Maternity Services and Acting Director of the Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine. His primary research focus is on the maternal neurological effects of pre-eclampsia. Stefan is current President of the Society of Obstetric Medicine of Australia and New Zealand, and the Clinical Lead for Preterm Birth with Safer Care Victoria.
- Prof Shekhar Kumta MBBS, PhD, FRCS Shekhar is Academic lead for the Department of Surgery at Northern Health in Melbourne. Trained as a traumatologist, his clinical work centres on orthopaedic oncology. His clinical research interests include musculoskeletal oncology, limb salvage surgery, molecular biology of giant cell tumours, and palliative surgical care. Shekhar has a strong interest in medical education and ethics, having served as Associate Dean of Medical Education and Executive Director of the Centre for Bioethics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
- A/Prof Danya Vears BBSci, MGenCouns, PhD Danya was previously a Principal Research Fellow at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute where she co-leads the Biomedical Ethics Group. She is now Associate Professor in Health Ethics and Professionalism at Deakin University. With a background in genetic counselling, Danya’s research focuses on ethical issues associated with genomic sequencing in both clinical and research contexts, genomic newborn screening, and expanded carrier screening.
- A/Prof Patricia Nicholson, RN, RM, MED, PhD, SFHEA
Patricia is Director of Higher Degrees by Research in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Deakin University, and a member of the Quality and Patient Safety Strategic Research Centre and Institute of Health Transformation. With expertise in perioperative nursing, higher education, and midwifery, her interdisciplinary research is focused on patient safety in the operating suite, midwifery practice and higher education. She is a Fellow of the Australian College of Perioperative Nurses. - Ms Alexandra Wakeley BA, BSc, M Bioethics Alex is Lecturer in Indigenous Health at Deakin’s School of Medicine. After completing her Master of Bioethics, she taught health ethics and professionalism within the medical program before joining the Indigenous Health team.
Feedback from past participants in the course
Critical care consultant: “Excellent programme, extremely well presented. Keenly recommending the event to others and would be keen to attend further workshops”
Anaesthetic consultant: “Thought provoking and high quality. Would love to do this again!”
Surgical registrar: “The discussions were very real and thought provoking… I am very operative driven and will use the knowledge from today’s course and incorporate [it] in my daily practice.”
Perioperative nurse: “It was very informative, engaging, clearly presented, very practical and interactive…a valuable opportunity to understand some complex clinical issues and hear the perspectives of our medical colleagues.”
Nurse unit manager: “Great variety of case studies that were relatable”
Surgeon and medical educator: “one of the most well conducted courses I’ve participated in… [the] selection of cases was spot on…very contemporary, everyday matters…not esoteric or extreme examples. [They] involved the full spectrum of professionals involved in healthcare settings….so important for students and trainees to understand all viewpoints.”
Obstetrician: “I enjoyed it very much, and learned a lot.”