Why would medical publishers not incorporate core bioethical values into their Ethics Guidelines?

Abstract

It is quite universally acknowledged by bioethicists, at least in the western world, that respect for the patients’ autonomy, non-malevolence, beneficence, and justice (also called equity) are four core ethical values in medicine. The Ethics Guidelines of key journals in laboratory medicine are not explicit about the first three of these values, and even implicitly, they seem to miss values of justice. Health equity being one of the main objectives of public health policy across the world, we suggest that values of equity explicitly become part of the Ethics Guidelines of laboratory medicine journals.Biochemia Medica could show the way to other medical publishers by incorporating into its Ethics Guidelines these very important core bioethical values.