Code of Ethics

Community Medical Foundation for Patient Safety

The Community of Competence™ and Foundation for Life

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Our Code of Ethics

Community Medical Foundation for Patient Safety, by virtue of our role as a non-profit institution, a learning organization, leader and partner in patient safety research and education, we strive to uphold the highest ethical standards of conduct and practices. Along with our vision, mission, and values, our ethical code is essential to carry out our operations and to serve the health and well-being of our communities in Houston, the State of Texas, the United States, and abroad.

Individually and collectively, we honor and demonstrate the following ethical standards in conducting research with and providing service to our patients, partners, clients, and community:

Accountability—responsible for one’s decisions and actions
Citizenship—maintain trust and respect as a productive and responsible leader and member of our community
Stewardship—employ just and judicious principles of prudence, conscience, conservation, and precaution in upholding public trust and managing human and material resources
Excellence—seek exemplary pursuits and conduct in business, personal, professional, scientific research, and in our relationship with all parties
Egalitarianism—ensure respect and fairness in relation to and with all members of our community

While we uphold and adhere to the above ethical values within our organization, we are committed to the highest standards in Communication, Discovery and Disclosure, Community Role and Leadership, and Organizational and Research Conduct, as specifically stated below.

Communication

As a learning organization, we will exercise to all possible extent the most optimal and informative methods to promote a positive image of the Foundation and to convey our message to our community. However, in all aspects of communication, the rights to privacy and confidentiality of our patients, partners, clients, study participants, and members will be our primary consideration. The values represented in our code address our Foundation’s ethical responsibilities to our broad community as well as to those deriving benefits and services from our organizational roles as employer, business partner, and scientific entity. Although explicit responsibilities are also included in legal and accountability requirements, it should be remembered these legal and ethical obligations often overlap, and the ethical obligations often extend beyond legal and accountability requirements.

Disclosure

As a research foundation and participant within the scientific community, we firmly believe and uphold the primary duty to share research and scientific discoveries that can directly benefit patients and improve patient safety. While we are committed to disclosure of discovered scientific findings, we also will adhere to the highest standards of confidentiality and legal protection of intellectual property and proprietary materials, such copyrights, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets.

Our Foundation, being dependent upon the community’s confidence and support and as a contributor to the scientific community, is accountable to the public; therefore, all communications and disclosures of information and data related to the institution should be clear, accurate, and sufficiently complete to assure that it is not misleading. Those who are affiliated with our Foundation are responsible for providing safeguards to prevent unauthorized release of information and to support procedures for authorized release of data.

Leadership

As a leader, our foundation will work for fair and effective use of available human and material resources to promote patient safety and healthcare quality. This includes efforts to coordinate and collaborate with other partners, professionals, and healthcare organizations and to share in community solutions. As the recipient and custodian of public and private funds, our Foundation is especially concerned with ethical stewardship and procurement of goods and services, and requires that its officers and staff request and acquire goods and services in the most ethical manner possible. This includes maintaining fairness and responsibility by refusing any prospect of personal gain in exchange for influencing our Foundation’s contracting or procurement decisions and demonstrating activities that are a conflict of interest.

The values of our Code of Ethic require all those affiliated with our Foundation to respect and promote our ideals of patient-centered medicine within our Community of Competence™. Ethical conduct includes the support of informed consent for participation in any study, as well as for diagnostic services.

Pertaining to our patient safety tools, services, and products, we will be honest and accurate with our representation of scientific facts related to our tools, services, and products. We believe in sharing information, particularly important lessons learned and discoveries that can be applied directly to best practices and evidence-based medicine.

We strive to serve as a role model for ethical conduct and leadership of the 21st Century healthcare system. We believe in an organizational culture that is safe and just and supports the teaching and practice of patient-centered medicine.

Scientific Conduct

Members of the Foundation will respect and support the ethical codes and responsibilities of one another and be sensitive to decisions that others might interpret as compromising their professional ability. To the extent possible and consistent with the ethical commitments of our Foundation, we will accommodate the desires of employees to embody religious and/or moral values in their professional activities. All members are required to disclose and/or dispense with any conflicts of interest as defined in our Foundation’s policies, and as required by state and federal laws.

In scientific endeavors, we will demonstrate the highest standard of professionalism necessary to conduct research, including but not limited to designing studies, enrolling and protecting participants (human subjects), collecting data, analyzing data, and reporting findings. Our Code of Ethics follows the standard code of conduct for healthcare professionals and scientists.

Several members of the Foundation’s Board and the Community of Competence™ are members of the prestigious Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society. These members have taken the oath “to encourage original investigations in science, to foster the companionship and cooperation among scientists, to maintain honor, integrity and honesty in all scientific activities and to assume the other continuing responsibilities of [Sigma Xi] membership.”