Purpose
Medical ethics education is essential for fostering professionalism and preparing medical students to navigate ethical dilemmas in clinical practice. Supported by the IAMSE-ScholarRx Curriculum Development Grant, we developed a novel ethics learning thread incorporating self-developed ScholarRx bricks with active learning modules. This study evaluated the effectiveness of this integrated approach.

Methods
Three ScholarRx bricks were developed and implemented as asynchronous sessions in the pre-clerkship curriculum. Each brick included learning objectives, case studies, core content, a summary, and self-assessment questions. The active learning modules paired with the bricks were delivered in different formats, including a documentary viewing with reflective writing on a well-publicized story of a boy with immunodeficiency, a standardized patient role-play addressing vaccine hesitancy followed by small group discussions, and a live debate on blood transfusion for Jehovah’s Witness minor patients. Pre- and post-quizzes were administered to assess knowledge gain, and surveys were conducted to evaluate student perceptions. Descriptive analyses were performed on quiz scores and survey responses. IRB exemption was granted for this project.

Results
No significant differences were found between pre- and post-learning quiz scores. Likert-scale ratings showed all modules were comparably effective in helping students recognize ethical issues, think critically, and prepare for future practice. However, the debate module was rated significantly higher than the documentary module in helping students articulate ethical reasoning respectfully. Overall, students reported positive perceptions of the curriculum design.

Conclusion
This flexible curricular model enables effective integration of ethics training in medical school curricula. While quiz results revealed challenges in assessing ethics knowledge through multiple-choice questions, the positive student feedback highlights the model’s value. We believe this curriculum can enhance patient care by equipping future physicians to recognize, analyze, and resolve ethical dilemmas early in their careers.