The implications of developing a profession-wide code of ethics

Current efforts by two professional health education associations to draft a code of ethics could lead to the establishment of a profession-wide code serving as the basis for awareness, inspiration, training, and professional conduct. Such a code would also serve the social functions of professional protection and control. A coordinated attempt to formulate a profession-wide code could more closely unite all existing national health education organizations through a process of cooperative effort and value clarification, with implications for centralization, enforcement, and licensure. Members of the Society for Public Health Education, Inc. (SOPHE) and the Association for the Advancement of Health Education (AAHE) are currently engaged in an attempt to formulate a health education code of ethics. This article explores the history and purposes of such codes. In addition, it compares current health education professional concerns with those of the American Medical Association during the last century. Finally, it discusses the implications of a profession-wide code for centralization, enforcement, and licensure.