Professional Ethics - Medical Ethics

Professional Ethics

·        Characteristics of a profession: an important service, monopoly, self regulating, extensive training with intellectual component, autonomy in work

·        Professional ethics:

o  Ethics and values in roles and conduct of professionals

o  Aspirational and regulatory component

o  Ethics should reflect common social values: freedom, protection, equality, privacy, etc

·        Obligations to patients:

o   Previously paternalism

o   Then contractual model (but didn‟t acknowledge power imbalance)

o   Fiduciary model – built on trust – Doctor makes a recommendation, patient has informed consent

·        Values:

o   Honesty – eg conflict of interest

o   Competence

o   Diligence – give sufficient time and effort to the patient

o   Loyalty and objectivity

o   Fairness

o   Discretion 

o   Professionals as employees: issues around obligation to obey vs autonomy, whistle blowing, strikes

·        Economic issues: fee splitting (eg taking a cut out of a referral), accepting gifts, limits on advertising

·        Professional self-regulation: admitting, setting and applying norms