Abstract

KIE: These guidelines for the establishment and operation of ethics committees in hospitals or other health facilities were drawn up by the Judicial Council of the American Medical Association and approved in December 1984 by the AMA's House of Delegates. The voluntary, educational, and advisory nature of the ethics committee is emphasized, as is the importance of confining its functions to ethical matters. Advice is given on choosing members for the committee, which the Council recommends should be composed primarily of health care professionals. Among the other issues covered by the guidelines are the sources of matters to be considered by the committee, how committee recommendations should be recorded, and the relationship between the committee and the health care institution of which it is a part.