16 / 48
16
|
Volume 1 Issue 5
CDA
at
W
ork
CDA
CODEOFETHICS:
the values we stand by
The new CDA Code of Ethics will focus on the stable and enduring
values that underlie the practice of dentistry. “These fundamental
principles define the integrity of our profession, serve as a cornerstone
for dentists individually and collectively, and convey a promise to
society of professional commitment to the health and well-being of
individual patients and the public,” says Dr. Susan Sutherland, chair
of the CDA Code of Ethics Working Group and dentist-in-chief at the
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
“Dentists hold a special position of trust within society
and consequently are accorded a high level of respect and
autonomy,” she adds. “In return, there exists a professional
obligation to society that the members of our profession will
adhere to high ethical standards.”
The Code will unite dentists from coast to coast around
shared values, without being a legislative or regulatory tool.
“A code of ethics is part of a broader framework of ethical
practice that includes legislation, standards of practice,
guidelines and policies which are found in documents
produced by regulatory bodies, professional colleges and
relevant boards,” explains Dr. Sutherland. “Importantly, this
code of ethics will not be a code of conduct; CDA’s role
is not regulatory in nature. In this sense, the Code will be
aspirational, meaning it will outline the ethical commitments
that could guide a dentist’s practice and to which our
profession could aspire.”
The development of the Code of Ethics is a collaborative
effort between the CDA Committee on Clinical and Scientific
Affairs and the Trust and Value Working Group along with
ethicists hired for the project. Input was also obtained from
those dentists who completed the survey in June 2014 and
from corporate members and other key stakeholders who
shared their views in one-on-one interviews with the
project’s lead researcher.
CDA published its first code of ethics in 1902. Since the
document’s last revision in 1999, various forces have
continued to shape the delivery of oral health care in
Canada. “The development of a new code of ethics
will enable the profession to engage in a deliberate
reflection and dialogue to consider how contemporary challenges
intersect with collective and individual professional obligations,” sums
up Dr. Sutherland.
The new CDA Code of Ethics is scheduled for release in 2015.
a
CDA recently surveyed Canadian
dentists to help shape its new Code of
Ethics, which is intended to be an ethical
guide for the profession, rather than a
code of conduct.
The Code will be aspirational, meaning
it will outline the ethical commitments
that could guide a dentist’s practice
and to which our profession could
aspire.