The American College of Cardiology (ACC) and American Heart Association (AHA) have collaborated on a new guidance focused on medical ethics and professionalism in cardiovascular medicine.
The report, published simultaneously in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and Circulation, represents an update on a previous guidance the same two groups issued back in 2004.
The updated document covers a wide range of topics, including diversity, health inequities, conflicts of interest, clinician well-being, data privacy, social justice and more.
“As much as 80% of a person’s health is determined by the social and economic conditions of their environment,” Ivor Benjamin, MD, co-chair of the executive committee behind the report and a former AHA president, said in a prepared statement. “To achieve social justice and mitigate health disparities, we must go to the margins and shift our discussions to be inclusive of populations such as rural and marginalized groups from the perspective of health equity lens for all.”
“We have seen the COVID-19 pandemic challenge the physical and economic health of the entire country, coupled with a series of national tragedies that have awakened the call for social justice,” added C. Michael Valentine, MD, the committee’s other co-chair and a former ACC president, in the same statement. “There is no better time than now to review, evaluate and take a fresh perspective on medical ethics and professionalism.”
The AHA is planning to produce webinars and podcast episodes focused on the report’s findings, and a roundtable discussion has been scheduled for Thursday, May 13.
The ACC, meanwhile, will be hosting multiple presentations based on the guidance on Saturday, May 15, at ACC.21.
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.