[Dignity in Care - Designing and piloting an in-house training for health care professionals].

Authors

Andrea Züger, Sandra Stephanie Mai, Jan Gramm, Jochen Spang, Swantje Goebel

Published in

Zeitschrift fur Evidenz, Fortbildung und Qualitat im Gesundheitswesen. Jul 27, 2026. Epub Jul 27, 2026.

Abstract

Healthcare professionals often experience tensions between their professional ideals and the realities of their working conditions, which can lead to frustration, exhaustion, and demoralization. The concept "ABCD of Dignity in Care" (Chochinov, 2007) - comprising the four core competencies Attitude, Behaviour, Compassion, and Dialogue - offers a practical approach to providing dignified care even under challenging circumstances.
Based on this concept, the in-house training "Dignity in Care" was developed. The program consists of three key modules: (1) dignity in society and healthcare, (2) the "ABCD of Dignity in Care," and (3) context analysis and transfer to one's own institution. The training was piloted in two healthcare institutions and evaluated using written pre- and post-surveys, a questionnaire, and participant observation.
A total of 25 healthcare professionals from various disciplines took part. Overall, the evaluation (return N = 23, 92%) delivered positive results. Both the interdisciplinary exchange and the resource-oriented approach were particularly appreciated. At the content level, participants frequently expressed the desire for a deeper focus on the topic of self-care.
The findings highlight the relevance of the topic "dignity in care" for healthcare professionals and show how an interprofessional course format can foster mutual appreciation. Adapting this approach to other areas, such as nursing education or medical studies, is desirable, especially as the revised Medical Licensing Regulations explicitly call for multiprofessional exchange.
The training empowers healthcare professionals and makes dignity tangible and teachable-as both a value and a concrete call to action. The concept is currently being revised to give more emphasis to the topic of self-care. The course will be renamed "Dignity - Understanding, Protecting, Strengthening" and published as a course manual in 2027.

PMID:
42509141
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 28 Jul 2026.

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