Moments that Matter Most: Ethical Decision Making in Resident Care
A training series for nursing home staff
In collaboration with the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) as part of the agency’s Nursing Facility Quality Improvement Program (NFQIP), VCU Gerontology brings you Moments that Matter Most: Ethical Decision Making in Resident Care. This series of 8 free webinars will equip you with practical tools and strategies to recognize, navigate, and respond to complex decisions and ethical challenges in everyday nursing home care with compassion, professionalism, and person-centered care.
Three things that are unique about Moments that Matter Most:
Ethics is not just about policies and regulations. It is about the moments that matter most—the everyday decisions, conversations, and care choices nursing home staff make while supporting residents and their families.
Rather than telling you what to think, this series will provide practical frameworks and tools to help you work through difficult situations with confidence and compassion.
We won't shy away from the tough topics. Together, we'll explore issues such as resident choice and safety, family conflict, end-of-life decisions, sexuality and intimacy, and other ethical challenges that arise in nursing home care.
Let’s start with an introduction.
Ethics is more interesting and more relevant than most people expect. It shows up in everyday choices, conversations, and care decisions. In this session, we will explore the responsibilities and principles that guide ethical care and examine common, real world dilemmas faced in nursing homes. Understanding these foundations will prepare you for the rest of the series.
Live Webinar: Thursday October 1, 2026 1-3pm
Huddle-Up: Thursday November 12, 2026 1-2pm
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
We continue by exploring different ways of thinking about ethical decisions.
There is not always one clear solution or course of action to an ethical problem. In this session, you will learn three common approaches to ethical decision-making—virtues, duties, and consequences. Understanding these perspectives will give you practical tools for thinking through real-world examples and making thoughtful, well-reasoned choices in resident care that balance compassion, responsibility, and skills.
Live Webinar: Thursday December 3, 2026 1-3pm
Huddle-Up: Thursday January 7, 2027 1-2pm
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
Next, we turn ethical principles into everyday practice.
Providing ethical care is about more than knowing what is right—it is about how we show up for residents, families, and colleagues each day. In this session, we will explore the Caring Response framework, which combines professionalism, competence, and person-centered responsiveness. Together, these elements help build trust, strengthen accountability, and support high-quality care.
Live Webinar: Webinar 3: Thursday February 4, 2027 1-3pm
Huddle-Up: Thursday March 4, 2027 1-2pm
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
Next, we focus on the process of ethical decision-making.
When faced with a difficult situation, or ethical dilemma, it can be hard to know where to begin. Having a clear framework can help. In this session, we will explore a step-wise approach to ethical decision-making that can be applied to real-world challenges in nursing home care, helping you navigate complex situations with confidence and compassion.
Live Webinar: Thursday April 1, 2027 1-3pm
Huddle-Up: Thursday May 6, 2027 1-2pm
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
We continue by exploring an approach that fosters relationships and focuses on the well-being of those in our care.
Sometimes ethical challenges cannot be solved by simply applying a rule or following a process. In this session, we will examine the ethics of care, which is a framework that emphasizes compassion, empathy, connection, and context. By understanding the importance of relationships, we can find solutions that honor dignity, build trust, and support the well-being of residents and families.
Live Webinar: Dates coming soon
Huddle-Up: Dates coming soon
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
We continue by exploring the balance between choice and protection.
Many ethical dilemmas arise when a resident's preferences differ from what others believe is best or safest. In this session, we will examine the concepts of autonomy and paternalism and consider how to navigate situations where respecting a person's choices and protecting their well-being may seem to be in conflict.
Live Webinar: Dates coming soon
Huddle-Up: Dates coming soon
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
Next, we explore a topic that is often overlooked but remains an important part of person-centered care.
Residents do not stop being adults when they move into a nursing home. They continue to have needs for companionship, intimacy, privacy, and connection. In this session, we will examine the ethical and practical challenges that can arise around resident relationships, consent, and sexuality, and explore how to support dignity, autonomy, and safety in a respectful and compassionate way.
Live Webinar: Dates coming soon
Huddle-Up: Dates coming soon
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
We conclude the series by looking beyond individual decision-making to the systems that support ethical care.
Throughout this series, we have explored ethical principles, decision-making frameworks, and common challenges in nursing home care. In this final session, we will examine how ethics committees bring these elements together, helping staff, residents, and families navigate complex situations through discussion, consultation, and shared decision-making.
Live Webinar: Dates coming soon
Huddle-Up: Dates coming soon
(Registering for the webinar automatically registers you for the optional Huddle-Up)
How to participate in Moments that Matter Most: Ethical Decision Making in Resident Care
Please register for each individual Session. A single registration enrolls you in the live webinar and optional Huddle Up. We suggest you aim to participate in all 8 live webinars. However, we know things come up, so each webinar and Huddle-Up will be recorded so you can access them after the live webinar. Links to the recordings will be emailed to registrants and posted on this page.
Keep in mind that ethical decision-making is everyone's responsibility. Every team member has opportunities to support residents and families through challenging situations. We encourage you to participate in these webinars as a team and use them as a starting point for conversations about ethical, person-centered care in your organization.
Your Hosts
Gigi Amateau, MS, PhD
Gigi Amateau serves as Assistant Professor and Person-Centered, Trauma-Informed Care Lab Director for the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Department of Gerontology and Virginia Center on Aging. In her role with VCU, she focuses on person-centered, trauma-informed care for nursing homes, capacity-building within the home and community-based services network, and teaching in the graduate program, where she integrates poetry, film, and humanities as tools for building person-centered, trauma-informed skills. She is a certified personal care aide in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a certified yoga instructor with Yoga Alliance, a YWCA Richmond Pat Asch Social Justice Fellow, and a Health Equity Faculty Fellow with the VCU Health Humanities Lab.
Aisling Clardy, MS
Aisling is a project manager at the Virginia Center on Aging, Virginia Commonwealth University, where she leads initiatives focused on aging, disability, elder justice, and person-centered care. Originally from Ireland, Aisling's background spans direct service, community engagement, resource development, and the management of state, national, and international initiatives. Her work is grounded in person-centered, strengths-based approaches that promote the rights, dignity, autonomy, and well-being for older adults and people with disabilities. She is particularly interested in improving systems of care, fostering cross-sector collaboration, and advancing policies and practices that help older adults live in line with their values, preferences, and goals.
Your Presenters
Jenny Inker, MBA, M.S., Ph.D., LALFA
Jenny is an associate professor of gerontology, the co-program director for the Assisted Living Administration Concentration in the M.S. in Gerontology program and the Director of Curriculum Development. She is a licensed Assisted Living Administrator in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Dr. Inker teaches Social Gerontology and Aging and Human Values (ethics). She also supervises masters students completing their Assisted Living Residency and doctoral students in the Health Related Sciences PhD program. She co-leads a number of popular workforce training programs, including best practices in long-term care administration, ethics workshops and an exam preparation class for the Residential Care Assisted Living (RCAL) national exam. She has extensive leadership and management experience in senior living management in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Sonya Barsness
Sonya is a gerontologist with 30 years of experience in long-term care and dementia. After working in nursing homes and senior living, she became a consultant to help organizations put person-centered values into practice. She is considered a national expert on person-centered dementia care. Sonya is adjunct faculty with Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Gerontology.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Certificates of Attendance rather than CEUs will be offered to registered participants who attend the live webinar and complete a post-survey. Engagement is an important part of this series. Certificates will be offered to people who attended at least 75% of the session and who participate in at least 75% of polls, questions, or breakout activities.
You may attend any or all of the webinars!
Everyone who works in a nursing home, and anyone who is interested in learning more about person-centered dementia care.
Select one person from your team to register for each session. At the end of the session, registered participants will receive a post-training evaluation survey to complete. This survey will include instructions on how to share the names and email addresses of each team member, so that we may email each person an evaluation survey to complete, so that they can also receive a certificate of attendance.
For technical support, please email nico@worldeventsforum.com
Questions? Contact Aisling Clardy at clardya@vcu.edu.
A VCU Gerontology project in collaboration with the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) as part of the agency’s Nursing Facility Quality Improvement Program (NFQIP) and co-produced with World Events Forum.
