Ethical Leadership: Fostering an Ethical Environment and Culture 

Leaders strongly influence the ethical environment and culture of health care organizations, which, in turn, influence employee behavior. The Ethical Leadership component of IntegratedEthics® (IE) provides health care leaders with the practical tools and training they need to foster an ethical environment and culture that will make it easier for employees to "do the right thing."

The IntegratedEthics model of ethical leadership is organized around four compass points:

1. Demonstrate that ethics is a priority

2. Communicate clear expectations for ethical practice

3. Practice ethical decision making

4. Support your local ethics program

IntegratedEthics in Action 

Advancing Ethical Leadership Across VHA 

This article summarizes two different ethical leadership projects—one at South Texas Veterans Health Care System and the other at Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans' Hospital—that have a made a difference at these facilities.   

Read

Ethical Leadership: Fostering an Ethical Environment and Culture - 60-page primer explains the role leaders play in creating and sustaining an ethical culture in health care organizations, critical factors for success, and the specific behaviors leaders use to foster an ethical environment and culture. Intended for health care leaders at the executive and mid-manager levels.

Foglia MB, Cohen JH, Pearlman RA, Bottrell MM, Fox E. Perceptions of Ethical Leadership and the Ethical Environment and Culture: IntegratedEthics Staff Survey Data from the VA Health Care System. AJOB Primary Research, 2013. 4(1) 44-58.

National IntegratedEthics Policy (VHA Handbook 1004.06) - see sections 4, 5c, 17

Watch 

Ethical Leadership: Fostering an Ethical Environment and Culture Video - 44-minute, interactive training video to teach viewers leadership behaviors that will help foster an ethical leadership and culture 

Video with Descriptive Captioning 

Course Materials to be used in conjunction with Ethical Leadership video  

Use 

Tools to support the development of ethical leadership skills:

Ethical Leadership Bookmark 2in x 8in, 3in x 5in 

Ethical Decision-making Quality Check 

Ethical Leadership Self-Assessment Tool (ELSA)

Peer Feedback Activity on Leadership Behaviors and the Organization's Ethical Environment - based on the ELSA, this 15-minute group activity allows leaders to obtain information from their peers on behaviors that have had positive and negative effects on their organization's ethical environment and culture

Value of the Month Ethical Leadership Activities - a set of brief discussion activities that include value and discussion prompts, examples, and case studies. Intended for leaders at all levels, including committee chairs, to help employees articulate their individual values and improve mutual understanding of how values impact the work of the group or committee (editable version) 

Value of the Day Discussion - a week-long series based on the Value of the Month activity 

Value of the Day E-mail Activity - e-mail activity based on the Value of the Day Discussion

Ethical Leadership Curriculum - set of four activities, ranging from 15 minutes to an hour, intended to help leaders develop new skills and behaviors consistent with ethical leadership.  Includes slides, activities, and handouts for facilitators and participants. 

Talk About Ethics Activities - centered around examples from the media, activities prompt group discussion of ethical leadership concepts.

Managing for Organizational Integrity - a March 1994 Harvard Business Review article by Lynn Sharp

Leader Guide 

Participant Guide  

Psychology of Fraud: Why Good People Do Bad Things - a May 2012 presentation on NPR by Chana Joffe-Walt and Alix Spiegel

Leader Guide 

Participant Guide 

Tools to improve plans to strengthen an organization's environment and culture:

Ethical Leadership Improvement Plan Checklist - two-page checklist to guide design and implementation of strong EL improvement projects

Ethical Leadership Improvement Plan Summary - two-page worksheet to capture a concise snapshot of a completed EL improvement plan 

Tools to help leaders manage their IE programs:

IE Program: Status Check and Planning Tool - two-page tool to assist IE Councils in assessing their performance and identifying areas that need improvement 

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IE Highlights

Tools and resources for celebrating Compliance and Ethics Week

A special issue of AJOB Primary Research, a journal of the American Journal of Bioethics, features seven papers describing VA's experience evaluating ethics quality in the VA health care system as part of the IntegratedEthics comprehensive model for managing ethics in health care organizations.

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Most Downloaded IE Resources 
This Month

• Ethical Leadership: Fostering an Ethical Environment and Culture

• Ethical Leadership: Fostering an Ethical Environment and Culture Video 

• Ethics Consultation: Responding to Ethics Questions in Health Care
  

Additional Ethics Links 

The National Center for Ethics in Health Care has identified the following external sources of information for ethics in health care.

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