The International Code of Medical Ethics was adopted by the General Assembly of the

World Medical Association The World Medical Association (WMA) is an international and independent confederation of free professional medical associations representing physicians worldwide. WMA was formally established on September 18, 1947 and has grown to 115 national m ...

at London in 1949, amended in 1968, 1983 and 2006. It is a code based on the

Declaration of Geneva The Declaration of Geneva was adopted by the General Assembly of the World Medical Association at Geneva in 1948, amended in 1968, 1983, 1994, editorially revised in 2005 and 2006 and amended in 2017. It is a declaration of a physician's dedicati ...

and the main goal is to establish the ethical principles of the physicians worldwide, based on his duties in general, to his patients and to his colleagues.

History

After the approval of the

, the II General Assembly of the

analysed a report on "War Crimes and Medicine". This prompted the WMA Council to appoint another Study Committee to prepare an International Code of Medical Ethics, which after an extensive discussion, was adopted in 1949 by the III General Assembly.

Timeline (WMA meetings)

*1949: Adopted. 3rd General Assembly,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

*1968: First amendment. 22nd General Assembly,

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

*1983: Second amendment. 35th General Assembly,

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

*2006: Third amendment. 57th General Assembly,

Pilanesberg The Pilanesberg (formerly Pilandsberg) is a mountain in the North West Province, South Africa. The mountain is an ancient volcanic structure, circular in shape, that rises from flat surrounding plains. It is formed by three concentric ridges or r ...

References

{{reflist Medical ethics 1949 documents 1968 documents 1983 documents 2006 documents