This study provides an analysis of Brazilian articles on the teaching of ethics in undergraduate health courses from January 1997 to January 2009, using a search in the Virtual Health Library (VHL). Twenty-six articles met the inclusion criteria. The health fields receiving the main emphasis were medicine (19), nursing (5), and psychology and dentistry (1 each). Using content analysis, three thematic categories were identified: theoretical and philosophical reflections; pedagogical and methodological issues; and evaluation of the teaching of ethics. The main factors that influenced the learning of ethics were time of exposure to the course content and a crosscutting approach to ethics in the various other course disciplines. The study also highlighted the use of active methodologies and the professor's ethical background and attitude. Given current changes in education, technological and scientific progress, and the field of bioethics itself, it is necessary to discuss how ethics is taught in the health professions.
Teaching; Ethics; Higher Education; Health
