The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 News
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Ankylosing Spondylitis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
      • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / AMA Updates Code of Medical Ethics

AMA Updates Code of Medical Ethics

January 17, 2017 • By Kelly Tyrrell

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

Eight years ago, the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs embarked on a comprehensive review of the AMA Code of Medical Ethics. What emerged after years of hard effort, intensive feedback and thoughtful revisions was a modernized version of the guide, which the AMA House of Delegates voted to adopt in June 2016. It represents the first major update since 2001 of the Code of Ethics, which was first established at the inaugural AMA meeting in 1847.

You Might Also Like
  • AMA Meetings Tackle Practice Expense, Code Description Changes & More
  • Ethics Forum: Personal Ethics Questions Surrounding RheumPAC Donations
  • Ethics Forum: The Ethics of Accepting Gifts
Explore This Issue
February 2017
Also By This Author
  • The Impact of Joining the AMA

 Reasons for the Update
The modernization was conducted to “ensure physicians have useful and effective ethical direction that keeps pace with emerging demands, new technologies, changing patient expectations and shifting health care priorities,” the AMA said in a statement. When the review effort began, the Code of Ethics was deemed to be “fragmented and unwieldy” and “individual topics were difficult to find,” said the authors of a Journal of the American Medical Association viewpoint piece in September.1

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

“Ultimately, the [updated] code reflects the professional values of medicine,” says Audiey Kao, MD, PhD, vice president of ethics standards at the AMA.

(click image to enlarge)

A Careful Process
Dr. Kao also notes that the original nine principles of medical ethics as defined by the AMA were not altered in the modernized code. Rather, the updates removed outdated language and redundancies, evaluated for relevance the science and medical practices contained within it, and enhanced guidance where reviewers determined it to be unclear.

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Out of respect for the accumulated knowledge collected in the code since its genesis, the Council updated opinions only when it “judged guidance to be significantly out of step with current best ethics, biomedical science or the structures of contemporary healthcare.”2

For example, language related to treating patients with HIV was broadened to cover patients presenting with any disease status. “It clearly dated to the early AIDS epidemic,” says Bette Crigger, PhD, director of ethics policy and secretary to the Council on Ethics and Judicial Affairs for the AMA. And it was updated to encompass the scientific advances in genetics since the 1990s. “It’s not that the ethics had necessarily changed,” says Dr. Crigger.

Adding Team-Based Care
The updates to the code also address gaps identified during the comprehensive review process. This includes adding team-based care to reflect changes to healthcare delivery.

ad goes here:advert-3
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

According to the AMA, “teams are defined by their dedication to providing patient-centered care, protecting the integrity of the patient-physician relationship, sharing mutual respect and trust, communicating effectively, sharing accountability and responsibility, and upholding common ethical values as team members.” They are “the preferred method for providing coordinated, cost-effective, high-quality health care [sic] for patients.”

Pages: 1 2 3 | Single Page

Filed Under: Ethics, Practice Management, Professional Topics Tagged With: AMA House of Delegates, American Medical Association (AMA), Code of Medical Ethics, modernized codeIssue: February 2017

You Might Also Like:
  • AMA Meetings Tackle Practice Expense, Code Description Changes & More
  • Ethics Forum: Personal Ethics Questions Surrounding RheumPAC Donations
  • Ethics Forum: The Ethics of Accepting Gifts
  • Rheumatology Ethics’ Forum: A Physician’s Medical Error and the Patient’s Right to Know

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

ACR Convergence

Don’t miss rheumatology’s premier scientific meeting for anyone involved in research or the delivery of rheumatologic care or services.

Visit the ACR Convergence site »

Meeting Abstracts

Browse and search abstracts from the ACR Convergence and ACR/ARP Annual Meetings going back to 2012.

Visit the Abstracts site »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2021 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This site uses cookies: Find out more.