The Carol Carfang Nursing and Healthcare Ethics conference takes place February 24-26, 2027 at the Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach Resort and Spa in Clearwater Beach, Florida.
Healthcare ethical dilemmas are rarely black and white. The gray area, where different perspectives intersect, is where difficult questions arise. What can we do as healthcare professionals to have more clarity in these unsure situations?
February 24-26, 2027 Clearwater Beach, Florida
The conference offers various ticket prices to accommodate all attendees. Prices range from $599-$385 for the full event. Thursday or Friday only options are available for $299. Pricing does not include room reservation.
Past attendees have included registered nurses, advanced practice nurses, nurse leaders, nursing educators, physicians, healthcare administrators, clinical ethicists, bioethicists, healthcare educators, researchers, other healthcare professionals and nursing and healthcare students.
| February 24, 2027 | |
|---|---|
| 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. | Registration |
| 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. | Welcome Reception |
| February 25, 2027 | |
|---|---|
| 8:00 a.m. - 8:45 a.m. |
Continental Breakfast |
| 8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. |
Welcome Remarks |
| 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. |
It's Not their Story to Tell: The Ethics of Privacy of Healthcare Information Anita Ho, PhD, MPH Moderator: Theresa Stujenske |
| 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. |
The Quest for Transhumanism: Ethical Implications Michael Deem, PhD Joseph Vukov, PhD Sara Hendren, MDes. MA Moderator: Eric Vogelstein |
| 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. |
Respecting the Person: Advancing Ethical Treatment for those with Disabilities Laura Guidry-Grimes, PhD, HEC-C Moderator: Alison Colbert |
| 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m. | Lunch (Provided) |
| 1:15 p.m. - 2:45 p.m. | Concurrent Sessions (TBD) |
| 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
The Migrant Experience: One of Human Dignity or Dehumanization Holland Kaplan, MD Moderator: Megan Kitts |
| February 26, 2027 | |
|---|---|
| 8:00 a.m. - 8:45 a.m. |
Continental Breakfast |
| 8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. |
Welcome Remarks |
| 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. |
Mentoring Nurses and Other Clinicians to Address Ethical Challenges in Healthcare Practice and Policy Aimee Milliken, PhD, RN, HEC-C Moderator: Ruth Foreman |
| 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Session TBD |
| 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. |
Addressing Racism in Healthcare: The Impact of Injustice Ashley Fernandes, PhD, MD Moderator: Sr. Mary Meyers |
| 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m. | Lunch (Provided) |
| 1:15 p.m. - 2:45 p.m. | Concurrent Sessions (TBD) |
| 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. |
The Anti-Science Movement: Who Benefits? Who Suffers? Shannon Zenk, PhD MPH Jennifer Lingler, PhD, M.A., CRNP, FAAN Moderator: Michael Deem |
The Carol Carfang Nursing & Healthcare Ethics Conference offers a unique opportunity to discuss contemporary ethical issues with distinguished ethicists, educators, philosophers and healthcare professionals interested in complex ethical issues in healthcare.
We invite submissions of abstracts for a 15–20 minute presentation and for posters that address any contemporary ethical issue in healthcare at the 2027 Carol Carfang Nursing and Healthcare Ethics Conference. The abstract may not exceed 300 words and must be formatted with one-inch margins in 12 pt. Times New Roman typeface.
Potential topics, both general and specific:
Abstracts will be reviewed on a rolling basis, ending on October 15, 2026
Contact hours will be available, with more details to be released soon.
Duquesne University, School of Nursing is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
Dear Conference Participants, Presenters and Sponsors,
We are delighted to welcome you, or welcome you back, to the fourth biennial Carol Carfang Nursing & Healthcare Ethics Conference. Over the next few days in beautiful Clearwater Beach, Florida, we will examine, reflect upon and confront the many difficult ethical and practical challenges that arise in healthcare today. Our presenters range from nurses to philosophers, physicians to clinical ethicists, and genetic counselors to health law and policy experts. Our conference program reflects the diversity and depth of ethical challenges across multiple areas of healthcare, and calls for collaboration in addressing them.
The School of Nursing at Duquesne University is committed to interdisciplinary education, scholarship, and the value of the humanistic aspects and ethical underpinnings of nursing practice. At the heart of our approach to educating future nurses, advanced practice nurses and nurse researchers is the conviction that clinical work is a moral enterprise. Excellence in nursing practice requires not only acuity of mind and clinical competence, but also a firm moral identity and a responsiveness to the numerous ethical challenges arising from clinical care.
At the Duquesne School of Nursing, we integrate ethics education into the curriculum—from our rigorous BSN program to our PhD in Nursing Ethics program—with the expectation that our graduates will excel as clinicians and as moral leaders in healthcare. The Carfang Conference is a natural extension of this conviction.
We thank you for participating in what we expect to be a vigorous and enlightening event, and we look forward to seeing you again in 2027 for the next Carol Carfang Nursing & Healthcare Conference.
Sincerely,
Mary Ellen Glasgow, Dean and Professor, Chair
Eric Vogelstein, Associate Professor and Director of Ethics for the School of Nursing,
Co-Chair
Michael Deem, Associate Professor and Director of the Consortium Ethics Program, Co-Chair
Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa, Clearwater Beach, FL We look forward to welcoming you to the Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa! The beachfront four-diamond resort offers 287 luxurious condo-style guest rooms with
walkout balconies for water and sunset views. Steps away from the powder-white sands of Clearwater Beach, the resort brings world-class
style and amenities to the west coast of Florida. Balanced between the turquoise-blue
waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the picturesque Intracoastal Waterway, Hyatt Regency
Clearwater Beach Resort and Spa delivers an idyllic location on the new Clearwater
Beach Walk, along with the sophistication, comfort, and convenience of a luxury resort. Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa
Reservations for the 2027 Conference are now open!
Hotel Information
See the complete resort fact sheet.
301 South Gulfview Blvd
Clearwater Beach, Florida 33767
Hotel General Info: (727) 373-1234
Reservations
Answering common questions prospective attendees may have regarding The Carol Carfang Nursing and Healthcare Ethics Conference
Contact hours will be available, with more details to be released soon.
Duquesne University, School of Nursing is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
Questions about registration and/or abstracts?