Respiratory Care Ethics & Professional Conduct
In the conduct of professional activities the Respiratory Therapist shall be bound by the following ethical and professional principles. Respiratory Therapists shall:
- Demonstrate behavior that reflects integrity, supports objectivity, and fosters trust in the profession and its professionals. Actively maintain and continually improve their professional competence and represent it accurately
- Perform only those procedures or functions in which they are individually competent and which are within their scope of accepted and responsible practice
- Respect and protect the legal and personal rights of patients they treat, including the right to privacy, informed consent and refusal of treatment
- Divulge no protected information regarding any patient or family unless disclosure is required for responsible performance of duty, or required by law
- Provide care without discrimination on any basis, with respect for the rights and dignity of all individuals
- Promote disease prevention and wellness
- Refuse to participate in illegal or unethical acts
- Refuse to conceal, and will report, the illegal, unethical, fraudulent, or incompetent acts of others
- Follow sound scientific procedures and ethical principles in research
- Comply with state or federal laws which govern and relate to their practice
- Avoid any form of conduct that is fraudulent or creates a conflict of interest, and shall follow the principles of ethical business behavior
- Promote health care delivery through improvement of the access, efficacy, and cost of patient care
- Encourage and promote appropriate stewardship of resources.
Effective 12/94 Revised 12/07