National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine  CODE OF ETHICS

All practitioners certified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine must be committed to responsible and ethical practice, to the growth of the profession's role in the broad spectrum of American health care, and to their own professional growth.  All Diplomates, Applicants and Candidates for certification agree to be bound by the NCCAOM Code of Ethics.

 

Commitment to the Patient
I will:

1. Respect the rights, dignity, and person of each patient.

2. Render to each patient the highest quality of care and make timely referrals to other Oriental medicine providers or health care professionals as may be appropriate.

3. Accept and treat all those seeking my services in a nondiscriminatory manner.

4. Avoid treating patients when my judgment or competence is impaired by untreated chemical dependency or physical or mental incapacity reasonably believed to be hazardous to the safety of the patient.

5. Keep the patient informed by explaining treatments and outcomes and avoid making promises with regard to outcomes that will create inappropriate expectations.

6. Maintain professional boundaries in relationships with patients and avoid any relationships that might exploit practitioner/patient trust.

7. Not engage in sexual contact with a current patient if the contact commences after the practitioner/patient relationship is established.

8. Not engage in sexual contact with a former patient unless a reasonable period of time has elapsed since the professional relationship ended and the sexual contact does not exploit the trust established during the professional relationship.

9. Keep accurate records of history and treatment and respect the confidentiality of those records or any other personal information imparted by the patient in accordance with law, including compliance with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Rules implementing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).

10. Follow the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regulations regarding the protection of human subjects in research studies and clinical trials (45 CFR Part 46).

11. Follow U.S. Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare, National Institutes of Health, Amended August 2002).
 
 

Commitment to the Profession
I will:

1. Continue to work to raise the standards of the profession.

2. Use appropriate professional mechanisms to report ethical and professional practice violations.

3. Maintain the highest standard of ethical and professional practice to the benefit of my patients and the profession.

4. Provide accurate, truthful, and nonmisleading information in connection with any application for licensure, certification, or recertification. Report any changes to the information I submitted at the time of application as required by appropriate licensing, testing and certifying bodies, including but not limited to reporting to the NCCAOM any disciplinary actions taken by a school or regulating agency against me, and civil actions or criminal charges that may be relevant to my health care practice.

5. Answer all questions in any examination based only on my own knowledge at the time, with no cheating.

6. Report to NCCAOM or appropriate licensing authorities any information I have or obtain about any violations of the Code of Ethics, including but not limited to the providing of false, inaccurate, or misleading information or cheating by myself or others.
 

Commitment to the Public
I will:

1. Provide accurate information regarding my education, training and experience, professional affiliations, and certification status.

2. Refrain from making public statements on the efficacy of Oriental medicine that are not supported by the generally accepted experience of the profession.

3. Respect the integrity of other forms of health care and other medical traditions and seek to develop collaborative relationships to achieve the highest quality of care for individual patients.

4. Refrain from any representation that NCCAOM certification implies licensure or a right to practice unless so designated by the laws in the jurisdiction in which I practice.

5. Use only the appropriate professional designations for my credentials.