Writing a new code of ethics for sports physicians: principles and challenges

A code of ethics for sports physicians needs to be clear, appropriate and practically useful to clinicians in everyday clinical circumstances and for situations that may be difficult or contentious. For a code of ethics to be so opposite requires that it have some basis in the ethical concerns of clinicians. This article reflects on the recent experience of rewriting the code of ethics for the Australasian College of Sports Physicians, describing the findings from the research, the processes and challenges that arose, and providing suggestions for other code writers in this field.