Law and ethics support for health professionals: an alternative model.

F ollowing surveys identifying the need for ongoing learning in relation to law and ethics amongst health professionals, the Law and Ethics Education and Development (LEED) initiative was launched. This was a programme of education designed for, and delivered to, health professionals working within the National Health Service (NHS), UK, with the added value of multiprofessional learning amongst colleagues from a single institution. The initiative was funded by the NHS Executive and provided for two lecturers to work for three years within the northwest region. The lecturers, an academic lawyer based at the University of Liverpool, and an ethicist based at the University of Manchester worked in collaboration through the auspices of the Institute of Medicine Law and Bioethics. A central thrust of this initiative was the delivery of the ‘‘Introduction to Health Care Law and Ethics’’ study day. This was delivered to as many NHS trusts, primary care groups/ trusts as possible during the course of the funded period. The aims of this course included extending the participant’s knowledge of: