Nonetheless, the code provides no systematic justification for the principles it asserts. Although these principles are helpful tools, they are insufficient to resolve major ethical dilemmas. The code provides no means of ordering ethical priorities and fails to address issues such as peer review and conflict of interest. It is deafeningly silent on both abortion and euthanasia. In view of these limitations, the code must be seen as an important but unfinished reflection on the essence of being a good physician.
Canadian physicians have a new code of ethics.
Such questions can be answered only in the context of the tradition of the profession, and then only with an understanding of the nature and history of such codes and an appreciation of their benefits and limitations. Historical perspectives In the Western tradition, explicit expressions of theoretic standards for the practice of medicine date from early Greek history. The oath of Hippocrates is an early and well-known example of the former, whereas the prayers often attributed to Moses Maimonides are examples of the latter. Such obligation remains in place today, although its articulation differs in accordance with various cultural, religious and social influences. This obligation is the foundation of the CMA Code of Ethics.