| Code of Ethics |
In order that the dignity and honor of the Orthodontic profession be upheld, its standards exalted, its sphere of usefulness extended and the advancement of Orthodontic science promoted such that the members of the Indian Orthodontic Society may understand more clearly their duties and obligations to the Orthodontic profession, the society / community, the following principles of ethics are presented in the form of general guide lines which an Orthodontist is expected to follow in carrying out his professional activities vis-à-vis his patients or fellow practitioners. |
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| Section 1 - Continuing Professional Development in Orthodontics: |
An Orthodontist may share his professional experience/knowledge of the recent advances in the subject among fellow Orthodontists by conducting CDE programs in a recognized teaching institution / Indian Orthodontic Society Study Group. He / she is permitted to conduct lectures / demonstrations on the recent technologies to fellow orthodontist including typodont exercises.
He may attend / deliver only lectures high lighting the abilities of the orthodontic treatment in a general forum ie., meetings / conferences of general dental surgeons and sister speciality organizations thus promoting awareness and enlightening them on the scope of orthodontist. |
| Section 2 - Service to the Public: |
The Orthodontist's primary duty of serving the public is discharged by giving the highest type of service of which he is capable and by avoiding any conduct that leads to lowering the esteem of the profession of which he is a member.
In serving the public, an Orthodontist may exercise reasonable discretion in selecting patients for his practice. However, he may not refuse to accept a patient into his practice or deny Orthodontic service to a patient solely because of the patient's race, creed, color or national origin. |
| Notes |
| 1 |
The use of professional letterheads in connection with an Orthodontist’s efforts to promote a commercial endeavor is undignified and might tend to lower public esteem for the profession. |
| 2 |
The use of professional letterheads in connection with an Orthodontist's efforts to promote a commercial endeavor is undignified and might tend to lower public esteem for the profession. |
| 3 |
It is unethical for an Orthodontist to use patients for teaching or research purposes without their fully informed consent or to mislead a patient as to identify the Orthodontist who performs the service or procedure. |
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| Section 3 - Regulation of a Profession: |
Every profession receives from the society the right to regulate itself - to determine and judge its own members. Such regulations are achieved largely through the influence of the professional societies and hence, every Orthodontist has a dual obligation of making himself / herself a part of a professional society and of observing its rules and regulations. |
Section 4 - Leadership: |
An Orthodontist has the obligation of providing freely his skills, knowledge, and experience to the society in those fields in which his / her qualifications entitle him to speak with professional competence. An Orthodontist should be a leader in his community and make all efforts leading to the improvement of the dental health of the general public. |
Section 5 - Emergency Service: |
An Orthodontist has an obligation, when consulted in an emergency by the patient of another orthodontist to attend to the conditions leading to the emergency and to refer the patient to his regular Orthodontist who should be informed of the conditions found and treated. |
Section 6 - Consultation: |
An Orthodontist has the obligation of seeking consultation whenever the welfare of the patient will be safeguarded or advanced by having resource to those who have special skills, knowledge and / or experience. A consultant will hold the details of consultation in confidence and will not undertake treatment without the consent of the attending practitioner. |
Section 7 - Expert Testimony: |
An Orthodontist may provide expert testimony when that testimony is essential to adjust and fare disposition of a judicial or administrative action.
An Orthodontist has the obligation to refrain from commenting disparagingly without justification about the services of another Orthodontist.
In a malpractice suit both parties have a right to present expert testimony through witnesses. An Orthodontist acting as a witness may not be disciplined merely for presenting his professional opinion. |
Section 8 - Fee Structuring: |
An Orthodontist who purchases a retiring or deceased’s practice may ethically agree to pay the retiring orthodontist a percentage of the fees collected from patients of the living or deceased Orthodontist or dentist or his/her dependants/heirs for a limited period of time. |
Notes |
| 1 |
An Orthodontist may ethically agree to pay another Orthodontist or dentist a percentage of his
fees as a part of an agreement covering the use of office facilities. |
| 2 |
Orthodontist in partnership may use any reasonable formula how partnership may ensue and how
partnership profits may be divided among partners. |
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Section 9 - Secret Agents and Exclusive Methods: |
An Orthodontist has an obligation not to prescribe, dispense or promote the use of drugs or other agents where complete formulas are not available to the profession. He also has the obligation not to prescribe any therapeutic agent, the value of which is not supported by scientific evidence. Orthodontist has the further obligation of not holding out as any exclusive agent, method or technique. |
Section 10 - Patents and Copy Rights: |
An Orthodontist has the obligation of making the fruits of his discoveries and labors available to all when they are useful in safe guarding or promoting the public. An orthodontist may secure patents and copyrights provided that they and the remuneration derived from them are not used to restrict research, practice or the benefits of the patented or copyrighted material. |
Section 11 - Advertising: |
Advertising reflects adversely on the Orthodontist who employs it and lowers the public esteem of the profession. The Orthodontist has the obligation of advancing his reputation for fidelity, judgment and
skill solely through his professional services to his patients and society. The use of advertising in any from to solicit patients is inconsistent with his obligation. |
| Notes |
| 1 |
It is unethical for an Orthodontist to induce publication or articles in non professional media that for example, praises his research, connects with him technological advances in orthodontics or announce his participation in a postgraduate course. It is also unethical for an Orthodontist to sell or distribute health education material containing his name and professional identification. It is therefore unethical for an orthodontist to induce any publication that tends to be professionally self laudatory, or that tends to differentiate him professionally from other Orthodontists. |
| 2 |
It is unethical for an Orthodontist to induce publication or articles in non professional media that for example, praises his research, connects with him technological advances in orthodontics or announce his participation in a postgraduate course. It is also unethical for an Orthodontist to sell or distribute health education material containing his name and professional identification. It is therefore unethical for an orthodontist to induce any publication that tends to be professionally self laudatory, or that tends to differentiate him professionally from other Orthodontists. |
| 3 |
An Orthodontist who permits his name to be used in a dental health education pamphlet to be distributed to the public at large by commercial firm is engaged in unethical conduct. |
| 4 |
An Orthodontist is not prohibited by ethics from engaging in an activity such as that of a radio / television /sport commentator, but he should not give undue emphasis on his identity as a practicing orthodontist. It is advisable to inform the Indian Orthodontic Society of such an activity. |
| 5 |
It is unethical for an Orthodontist to distribute reprints of published articles to a large segment of dental and medical practitioners. This practice appears to be an obvious effort to solicit references by indicating superiority in the special field. |
| 6 |
It is unethical for an Orthodontist to furnish so called patient education pamphlets to dental and medical practitioners for distribution to patients where pamphlets, in effect, stress the superiority of the procedures used by him. Publications of such so-called patient education material have the effect of soliciting patients. |
| 7 |
It is unethical for an Orthodontist to allow the use of offers or his person as part a commercial
advertisement. |
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| Section 12 - Professional Cards, Letterheads & Announcements: |
An Orthodontist may properly utilize the professional cards, announcement cards or recall notices to patients on record as long as the text is consistent with the dignity of the profession and with the custom of orthodontist of the community.
Announcement cards may be sent when there is a change in location or an alteration in the character of practice, but only to other orthodontists, dentists and to members of medical profession, patients, friends and relatives. |
| Notes |
| 1 |
An Orthodontist who invites his patients of record, other orthodontist, dentists, medical practitioners, friend & relative in connection with establishment of a new office is not engaged in unethical conduct. |
| 2 |
An Orthodontist who purchases or takes over the practice of another orthodontist or dentist who is retiring may send announcement or recall cards to the retiring practitioners' patients. |
| 3 |
The use of pictures, symbols and slogans on professional stationary is discouraged. |
| 4 |
An Orthodontist may insert a maximum of three paid announcements of his new orthodontic practice in a local newspaper as per the guidelines of the DENTIST ACT, 1948. |
| 5 |
On establishing an orthodontic practice an orthodontist may send announcements to other Orthodontic, dentists, medical practitioners, friends and relatives |
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| Section 13 - Office, Door, Lettering Signs: |
An Orthodontist may properly utilize office store door lettering and signs provided that their style and the text are consistent with the dignity of the profession and custom of other orthodontists of the community.
However, it is unethical to use flashing floodlights to draw attention to their name plate on the outside of the private practice premises.
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| Section 14 - Use of Professional Titles and Degrees: |
An Orthodontist may use the titles Dr. Orthodontist and the degrees / abbreviations as approved by the DCI in connection with his name on cards, letterheads, office door signs, sign boards, announcements and directory listings.
It is unethical to use an abbreviation or implying a dental qualification which is not in accordance with recognized dental qualification of the Dental Council of India. Similar use of fellowships and honorary degrees is unethical.
Membership or fellowship of professional societies / association / federation etc. should not be abbreviated to look like a degree but may be written in its full form.
Encouragement or connivance of an Orthodontist, to a non - orthodontist to do Orthodontic treatment and abatement of Orthodontic quackery is also unethical. |
| Notes |
| 1 |
An Orthodontist may ethically combine his practice of Orthodontics with the practice of other branches of the healing arts.
The Indian Orthodontic Society approves of and encourages advanced educational programs and they are recognized as essential to its success. For this reason it is ethical for promotional brochures to contain curriculum vitae of clinicians.
Section 15 - Health Education of public:
An Orthodontist may properly participate in a program of health education of the public involving such media as the press, radio, television and lectures provided that such programs are in keeping with the dignity and the custom of the dental profession in the community. |
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| Section 15 - Health Education of public: |
An Orthodontist may properly participate in a program of health education of the public involving such media as the press, radio, television and lectures provided that such programs are in keeping with the dignity and the custom of the dental profession in the community.
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| Section 16 - Directories: |
An Orthodontist may permit the listing of his name in a directory provided that all Orthodontists in similar circumstances have access to a similar listing and provided that such a listing is consistent with the style and text with the orthodontist in the community. |
| Notes |
An Orthodontist shall practice only under his own name or an Orthodontist employing him, who practices in the same office In case of a partnership, name composed only of or more of the Orthodontists practicing in the partnership in the same office or a corporate name may be used. |
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| Section 18 - Transfer of Patients: |
| An Orthodontist will write a letter of the treatment plan/ progress and hand over the records of the patient(i.e. All X rays- Ortho pentamogramme, Lateral Cephalogram, Study Models and Photographs-Extra oral and Intra oral ) in case of patients getting transferred to another geographic city and or place. |
| Declaration: |
I declare that I have read the above document and that I am in agreement with the aforementioned ethics and enter into this accord of my own free will.
Signature |
Name:
Date:
IOS Membership No.:
DCI Registration No. / State: |
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