The Australian Medical Council (AMC) is developing a national code of professional conduct for doctors entitled Good Medical Practice: A Draft Code of Professional Conduct . The Code is intended to supersede existing State and Territory medical board professional conduct codes. The AMC intends to recommend that it be adopted by the new national medical board. The AMC released a public consultation draft in August 2008 (the Draft Code).

The AMA's joint submission on the Draft Code is attached below.

In summary, the AMA and co-signatories do not support the Draft Code, as written. Through its use of prescriptive, directive, and authoritarian tone and language, the Draft Code:

• undermines medical professionalism and inhibits good medical practice;
• compromises the doctor-patient partnership;
• patronises and alienates the medical profession;
• does not recognise ethical standards and commitment to professionalism that already exists in the medical profession.

The AMA and co-signatories strongly advocate that a Code of Professional Conduct must support and promote medical professionalism, facilitate good medical practice, and support the doctor-patient partnership by:

• guiding doctors in their relationships with patients and in their roles as patient advocates;
• supporting doctors’ professional judgment and clinical independence;
• responding to individual patient circumstances and diverse work settings; and
• respecting doctors and the wider medical profession.

We will continue to promote this position as the AMC's Draft Code undergoes further revision.

Co-signatories to the submission include the Australian Association of Medical Surgical Assistants, the Australian Association of Surgeons, the Australian Orthopaedic Association, the Australian Society of Anaesthetists, the Australian Society of Ophthalmologists, the Australian Society of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery, the Council of Procedural Specialists, the National Association of Specialist Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, the Rural Doctors Association of Australia, and the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand.

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AMA Joint Submission to AMC Code of Conduct (August 2008).pdf	59.17 KB