The Medical Board backed down and dropped these dangerous proposed changes to the Code of Conduct. We forced them to recognize that medical expertise cannot be sidelined by bureaucratic overreach. Stay alert because we will be watching them closely to ensure they never try to gut these ethical standards again.
September 3, 2018
Protect “Good Medical Practice” in Australia: safeguard the Medical Board Code of Conduct.
Final supporters
"First, do no harm"?
You might assume that doctors abide by enduring ethical principles in a Hippocratic Oath or Code of Conduct. However, this can no longer be assumed or taken for granted. Changes have been proposed to the Medical Board of Australia's existing Code of Conduct. These proposals endanger doctors and patients regarding clinical decision-making and freedom of conscience.
The proposals claim that only the patient or patient’s family can determine “culturally” what medical care is appropriate, endangering decision-making that is properly informed by doctors. They dictate what is considered “medically irrelevant”, such that doctors may face removal of their Medical Board registration if they do not comply with the Board, and with what patients’ families demand - no matter what they demand. This would be extremely dangerous for doctors on issues of conscience, for patients who cannot voice themselves whilst sick, and for medically informed decision-making that is a bedrock of good medical practice.
Please read the following message and sign in to add your voice to this petition:
Dear Medical Board of Australia,
Thank you for public consultation on proposed changes to the Code of Conduct.
The proposed changes are worrying. A vital standard for medical practice would be removed if patients or families stopped doctors from discussing what is medically relevant to their care, based on not considering such medical discussion “culturally safe”. They also would endanger patients when they are too ill to make their own decisions, by setting up families to determine what is appropriate “culturally” whilst dismissing any requirement for informed discussion about medical risks. By dictating to doctors what is considered "medically irrelevant" in consultations, the proposed changes threaten doctors’ ability to exercise independent clinical judgment and freedom of conscience.
The proposed changes would be dangerous to good medical practice. A patient or a patient's family could then demand surgical operations and other medical treatments, regardless of medical risk, on the basis of cultural wishes. Based on these significant proposed changes, doctors could be accused of not following the Code of Conduct and lose their registration if they did not go along with such demands. To exclude what doctors consider medically relevant from discussions with patients and families would clearly threaten well-established ethical principles of informed consent. This would not be "good medical practice", and would obstruct the medical professional's freedom to exercise sound clinical judgment.
The proposed changes should not be accepted as they are inconsistent with good medical practice.
Updates
Reached 2,500 supporters
August 16, 2018
Reached 1,000 supporters
July 31, 2018
July 26, 2018
The Medical Board of Australia is trying to strip away the clinical judgment that keeps patients safe and medical practice honest. We are seeing constant attempts to silence doctors who prioritize medicine over political agendas and we refuse to back down. This fight is about ensuring the Board stops playing games with the lives of patients and the conscience of the profession.
Reached 100 supporters
July 25, 2018
931 Comments
I strongly oppose the revised code which will restrict and punish doctors who want to express professional views according to their good conscience in good faith. This approach of the medical board does more harm to the common good of patients.
Regardless of cultural ideas, doctors should be able to tell patients and their families of all the consequences of having operations or treatments, so that an informed decision can be made as to follow through on the procedures or not to follow through.
It is of deep concern when the practice of medicine is under threat from fashionable ideologies. Doctors should be allowed to practise their skills to the best of their ability and following the dictates of their conscience, without the fear of punishment.
Silencing the independent expertise of a medical professional on "cultural" grounds help a person to make a difficult but properly informed decision? Ideology of this kind is an infection in medical practice that must be treated with more serious care.
These proposed changes are alarming, cutting right across the value of the current Code of Conduct, professional Medical Clinicians' standards, wisdom in decision making and freedom of Doctors' conscience. The current Code of Conduct must stand!
We must uphold the sanctity of life in all decision making and never coerce or discriminate against those, including our valued medical practitioners from acting against their informed conscience.
This proposed amendment erodes one of the key function of democracy - to promote and protect one of the most basic human rights - freedom of opinion and expression, even if they do not conform with the majority at the time, as set out by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
Share this petition
Share this petition to help it reach more people.
Your share link
The Medical Board backed down and dropped these dangerous proposed changes to the Code of Conduct. We forced them to recognize that medical expertise cannot be sidelined by bureaucratic overreach. Stay alert because we will be watching them closely to ensure they never try to gut these ethical standards again.
September 3, 2018
Protect “Good Medical Practice” in Australia: safeguard the Medical Board Code of Conduct.
Final supporters
"First, do no harm"?
You might assume that doctors abide by enduring ethical principles in a Hippocratic Oath or Code of Conduct. However, this can no longer be assumed or taken for granted. Changes have been proposed to the Medical Board of Australia's existing Code of Conduct. These proposals endanger doctors and patients regarding clinical decision-making and freedom of conscience.
The proposals claim that only the patient or patient’s family can determine “culturally” what medical care is appropriate, endangering decision-making that is properly informed by doctors. They dictate what is considered “medically irrelevant”, such that doctors may face removal of their Medical Board registration if they do not comply with the Board, and with what patients’ families demand - no matter what they demand. This would be extremely dangerous for doctors on issues of conscience, for patients who cannot voice themselves whilst sick, and for medically informed decision-making that is a bedrock of good medical practice.
Please read the following message and sign in to add your voice to this petition:
Dear Medical Board of Australia,
Thank you for public consultation on proposed changes to the Code of Conduct.
The proposed changes are worrying. A vital standard for medical practice would be removed if patients or families stopped doctors from discussing what is medically relevant to their care, based on not considering such medical discussion “culturally safe”. They also would endanger patients when they are too ill to make their own decisions, by setting up families to determine what is appropriate “culturally” whilst dismissing any requirement for informed discussion about medical risks. By dictating to doctors what is considered "medically irrelevant" in consultations, the proposed changes threaten doctors’ ability to exercise independent clinical judgment and freedom of conscience.
The proposed changes would be dangerous to good medical practice. A patient or a patient's family could then demand surgical operations and other medical treatments, regardless of medical risk, on the basis of cultural wishes. Based on these significant proposed changes, doctors could be accused of not following the Code of Conduct and lose their registration if they did not go along with such demands. To exclude what doctors consider medically relevant from discussions with patients and families would clearly threaten well-established ethical principles of informed consent. This would not be "good medical practice", and would obstruct the medical professional's freedom to exercise sound clinical judgment.
The proposed changes should not be accepted as they are inconsistent with good medical practice.
Updates
Reached 2,500 supporters
August 16, 2018
Reached 1,000 supporters
July 31, 2018
July 26, 2018
The Medical Board of Australia is trying to strip away the clinical judgment that keeps patients safe and medical practice honest. We are seeing constant attempts to silence doctors who prioritize medicine over political agendas and we refuse to back down. This fight is about ensuring the Board stops playing games with the lives of patients and the conscience of the profession.
Reached 100 supporters
July 25, 2018
931 Comments
Doctors must retain the right to professional opinion free of political correctness, or (often misguided) cultural perceptions. For example, should the cultural perception of some, that female genital mutilation is necessary, be respected? John Buchanan
I strongly oppose the revised code which will restrict and punish doctors who want to express professional views according to their good conscience in good faith. This approach of the medical board does more harm to the common good of patients.
Regardless of cultural ideas, doctors should be able to tell patients and their families of all the consequences of having operations or treatments, so that an informed decision can be made as to follow through on the procedures or not to follow through.
It is of deep concern when the practice of medicine is under threat from fashionable ideologies. Doctors should be allowed to practise their skills to the best of their ability and following the dictates of their conscience, without the fear of punishment.
Silencing the independent expertise of a medical professional on "cultural" grounds help a person to make a difficult but properly informed decision? Ideology of this kind is an infection in medical practice that must be treated with more serious care.
These proposed changes are alarming, cutting right across the value of the current Code of Conduct, professional Medical Clinicians' standards, wisdom in decision making and freedom of Doctors' conscience. The current Code of Conduct must stand!
We must uphold the sanctity of life in all decision making and never coerce or discriminate against those, including our valued medical practitioners from acting against their informed conscience.
This proposed amendment erodes one of the key function of democracy - to promote and protect one of the most basic human rights - freedom of opinion and expression, even if they do not conform with the majority at the time, as set out by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
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Doctors must retain the right to professional opinion free of political correctness, or (often misguided) cultural perceptions. For example, should the cultural perception of some, that female genital mutilation is necessary, be respected? John Buchanan