PHARMACY AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICAL ASSOCIATION Adopted Aug. 17, 1922: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF RETAIL DRUGGISTS CODE OF ETHICS CHAPTER I. The Duties of the Pharmacist in Connection with His Services to the Public. Pharmacy has for its primary object the service which it can render to the public in safeguarding the handling, sale, compounding and dispensing of medicinal substances. The practice of pharmacy demands knowledge, skill and integrity on the part of those engaged in it. Pharmacists are required to pass certain educational tests in order to qualify under the laws of our states. The states thus restrict the practice of pharmacy to those presons who by reason of special training and qualifications are able to qualify under regulatory requirements and grant to them privileges necessarily denied to others. In return the states expect the Pharmacist to recognize his responsibility to the community and to fulfill his professional obligations honorably and with due regard for the physical and moral well-being of society. The Pharmacist should uphold the approved legal standards of the United States Pharmacopoeia and the National Formulary for articles which are official in either of these works, and should, as far as possible, encourage the use of these official drugs and preparations and discourage the use of objectionable nostrums. He should sell and dispense only drugs of the best quality for medicinal use and for filling prescriptions. He should neither buy, sell nor use substandard drugs for uses which are in any way connected with medicinal purposes. The Pharmacist should be properly remunerated by the public for his knowledge and skill when used in its behalf in compounding prescriptions, and his fee for such professional work should take into account the time consumed and the great responsibility involved as well as the cost of the ingredients. The Pharmacist should not sell or dispense powerful drugs and poisons to persons not properly qualified to administer or use them, and should use every proper precaution to safeguard the public from poisons and from all habit-forming medicines. The Pharmacist, being legally entrusted with the dispensing and sale of narcotic drugs and alcoholic liquors, should merit this responsibility by upholding and conforming to the laws and regulations governing the distribution of these substances. The Pharmacist should seek to enlist and merit the confidence of his patrons and when this confidence is won it should be jealously guarded and never abused by extortion or misrepresentation or in any other manner. The Pharmacist should consider the knowledge which he gains of the ailments of his patrons and their confidences regarding these matters, as entrusted to his honor, and he should never divulge such facts unless compelled to do so by law. The Pharmacist should hold the health and safety of his patrons to be of first consideration; he should make no attempt to prescribe or treat diseases or strive to sell drugs or remedies of any kind simply for the sake of profit. He should keep his pharmacy clean, neat and sanitary in all its departments and should be well supplied with accurate measuring and weighing devices and other suitable apparatus for the proper performance of his professional duties. It is considered inimical to public welfare for the Pharmacist to have any clandestine arrangement with any Physician in which fees are divided or in which secret prescriptions are concerned. The Pharmacist should primarily be a good citizen, and should uphold and defend the laws of the state and nation. He should inform himself concerning the laws, particularly those relating to food and drug adulteration and those pertaining to health and sanitation and should always be ready to coöperate with the proper authorities having charge of the enforcement of the laws. The Pharmacist should be willing to join any constructive effort to promote the public welfare and he should regulate his public and private conduct and deeds so as to entitle him to the respect and confidence of the community in which he practices. CHAPTER II. The Duties of the Pharmacist in His Relations to the Physician. The Pharmacist even when urgently requested so to do should always refuse to prescribe or attempt diagnoses. He should, under such circumstances, refer applicants for medical aid to a reputable legally qualified Physician. In cases of ex treme emergency as in accident or sudden illness on the street in which persons are brought to him pending the arrival of a Physician such prompt action should be taken to prevent suffering as is dictated by humanitarian impulses and guided by scientific knowledge and common sense. The Pharmacist should not, under any circumstances, substitute one article for another, or one make of an article for another in a prescription, without the consent of the Physician who wrote it. No change should be made in a Physician's prescription except such as is essentially warranted by correct pharmarceutical procedure, nor any that will interfere with the obvious intent of the prescriber, as regards therapeutic action. He should follow the Physician's directions explicitly in the matter of refilling prescriptions, copying the formula upon the label or giving a copy of the prescription to the patient. He should not add any extra directions or caution or poison labels without due regard for the wishes of the prescriber, providing the safety of the patient is not jeopardized. Whenever there is doubt as to the interpretation of the Physician's prescription or directions, he should invariably confer with the Physician in order to avoid a possible mistake or an unpleasant situation. He should never discuss the therapeutic effect of a Physician's prescription with a patron nor disclose details of composition which the Physician has withheld, suggesting to the patient that such details can be properly discussed with the prescriber only. Where an obvious error or omission in a prescription is detected by the Pharmacist, he should protect the interests of his patron and also the reputation of the Physician by conferring confidentially upon the subject, using the utmost caution and delicacy in handling such an important matter. CHAPTER III. The Duties of Pharmacists to Each Other and to the Profession at Large. The Pharmacist should strive to perfect and enlarge his professional knowledge. He should contribute his share toward the scientific progress of his profession and encourage and participate in research, investigation and study. He should associate himself with pharmaceutical organizations whose aims are compatible with this code of ethics and to whose membership he may be eligible. He should contribute his share of time, energy and expense to carry on the work of these organizations and promote their welfare. He should keep himself informed upon professional matters by reading current pharmaceutical and medical literature. He should perform no act, nor should he be a party to any transaction, which will bring discredit to himself or to his profession or in any way bring criticism upon it, nor should he unwarrantedly criticise a fellow Pharmacist or do anything to diminish the trust reposed in the practitioners of pharmacy. The Pharmacist should expose any corrupt or dishonest conduct of any member of his profession which comes to his certain knowledge, through those accredited processes provided by the civil laws or the rules and regulations of pharmaceutical organizations, and he should aid in driving the unworthy out of the calling. He should not accept agencies for objectionable nostrums nor allow his name to be used in connection with advertisements or correspondence for furthering their sale. He should courteously aid a fellow Pharmacist who may request advice or professional information or who, in an emergency, needs supplies. He should not aid any person to evade legal requirements regarding character, time or practical experience by carelessly or improperly endorsing or approving statements relating thereto. He should not imitate the labels of his competitors nor take any other unfair advantage of merited professional or commercial success. When a bottle or package of a medicine is brought to him to be refilled, he should remove all other labels and place his own thereon unless the patron requests otherwise. He should not fill orders which come to him by mistake, being originally intended for a competitor. He should deal fairly with manufacturers and wholesale druggists from whom he purchases his supplies; all goods received in error or excess and all undercharges should be as promptly reported as are shortages and overcharges. He should earnestly strive to follow all proper trade regulations and rules, promptly meet all obligations and closely adhere to all contracts and agreements. PHARMACY, MANUFACTURING AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICAL MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION Adopted March 1923: A DECLARATION OF BELIEF I We Believe that the pharmaceutical manufacturer should ever be mindful of and guided by the fundamental principle that his business is a solemn calling and a glorious profession dedicated to a great and paramount public service. II We Believe that the pharmaceutical manufacturer should always be animated by a true spirit of justice, amity, responsibility and service in all his dealings with others and unswervingly act at all times in pursuance of the elementary conception of right, honorable and ethical business conduct as befitting his membership in a society built upon the sure foundation of a democracy, organized in harmony with the most enlightened civilization in history, inspired by the teachings of our Divine Master, and finally directed equally to preserve the opportunity and rights of each for the benefit of all and to enhance the general happiness and welfare. III Hence We Believe that it is the unquestioned obligation of each and every pharmaceutical manufacturer: (a) To manufacture medicinal preparations only under proper conditions and of established value, pure and accurate in composition, and true upon and to their label; (b) To label, advertise and merchandise such preparations only in a manner wholly free from misrepresentation of any kind, in complete accord with both the spirit and terms of the applicable laws, and in entire harmony with the highest standard of commercial morality and ethics; (c) To refrain from in any way or to any extent infringing upon the equal rights (whether moral or legal) of a competitor and unfairly interfering with his business, as by uttering false or disparaging statements about him or his products or his business, by misappropriating his trade names or formulae or the distinctive form or dress of his products, or by enticing away his employes; |