Licensees must demonstrate ethical behaviour and adhere to the Practice Standards and all applicable laws.
Licensees must communicate in a professional, effective, and respectful manner and commit to a culture of learning, mentoring, continuous improvement, and team-based care when working with others.
Fairness, Equity, and Justice
Licensees must protect patients and the public from harm and discrimination, taking anti-discrimination measures and acting in a manner that is respectful of patient privacy and confidentiality when providing health services.
Licensees must provide services without discrimination on the basis of personal characteristics protected under the BC Human Rights Code, and may accept, continue, or limit services only for legitimate professional or clinical reasons.
Cultural Safety and Humility
Licensees must recognize and respect the cultural identities and diverse experiences of patients and ensure their own personal biases and power dynamics do not undermine the duty to promote and provide inclusive, culturally safe health services at all times.
Indigenous Cultural Safety and Humility
Licensees must recognize the distinct rights, identities, and lived experiences of Indigenous Peoples and take into account the historical and ongoing impacts of colonization, systemic racism, and trauma in healthcare.
Licensees must commit to providing Indigenous patients with health services that are culturally safe, anti-racist, and grounded in humility. This includes respecting Indigenous laws, protocols, and knowledge systems, and working in partnership with Indigenous patients, families, and communities to promote the healing and well-being of patients in those communities.
Integrity and Honesty
Licensees must demonstrate integrity and honesty in their professional conduct by being open, truthful, transparent, and accountable for their actions.
Do Good; Prevent Harm
Licensees must ensure their health services are patient-centred, culturally safe, and designed to promote patient well-being while minimizing risks of physical, emotional, cultural, and systemic harm.
Licensees must acknowledge and take steps to remediate any harm that occurs and to prevent risks of future harm.
Patient Autonomy
Licensees must respect and support both the right and the ability of each patient to make informed, voluntary decisions about their healthcare while upholding the interests of the patient and ensuring safe and ethical care.
Care, Dignity, and Respect
Licensees must treat every individual with compassion, courtesy, and respect and uphold the inherent dignity of every person to whom they provide health services.
Licensees must avoid conflicts of interest and provide health services in a fair and transparent manner.
Confidentiality
Licensees must protect personal and health information and use or disclose it only as authorized or legally required.
Accountability
Licensees must accept accountability for their professional conduct and consistently meet the ethical, legal, and professional obligations set out in the HPOA, the Regulations, the CHCPBC Bylaws, and the Ethics and Practice Standards. When providing virtual care, they must be aware of and comply with the licensing requirements of any jurisdiction in which a patient is located.
Licensees must always conduct themselves in a manner that upholds the trust placed in them by the public, patients, and the healthcare system.
Professional Performance
Licensees must only provide health services within their areas of professional competence and must maintain and continually develop the knowledge, skills, and judgment required to maintain a safe, effective, and evidence-informed practice.
Licensees must recognize that their professional obligations under the HPOA, the Regulations, the CHCPBC Bylaws, and the Ethics and Practice Standards take precedent over management policies and guidance or directives from other organizations in which they may be practising or with which they may be affiliated.
