Better to teach students health ethics than expect them to follow a code

摘要

It is unlikely that one could find more than 142 pharmacy students in the UK who are familiar with Immanuel Kant's first formulation of the categorical imperative. I am only confident that 142 students know and understand the concept because that is the number of pharmacy students I have introduced it to over the past two years. Yet, every pharmacy student in Britain will soon be privy to the Royal Pharmaceutical Society proposed code of conduct for students (PJ, 23 May 2009, p625), which is itself based on the Code of Ethics for Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians. A public consultation on the draft Code of Conduct is open from 22 May until 19 June 2009.