title: Development of the First Guideline for Professional Conduct in Medical Practice in Iran.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Professional behavior is first learned at the university. One of the necessary considerations in maintaining the professional environment of the university is establishing a set of codes for the behavior of physicians and medical students. This paper describes the process of developing the professional code of conduct in Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  A review of Iranian and international literature was performed to develop the first draft of the guideline. In sessions of group discussion by the authors, the articles of the draft were evaluated for relevancy, clarity, and lack of repetition. The draft was sent for evaluation to all participants, including the medical faculty members, residents, and medical students, four times and necessary corrections were made according to the comments received.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The final guideline included 76 behavior codes in 6 categories, including altruism, honor and integrity, responsibility, respect, justice, and excellence. The codes of the guideline cover the physicians' commitments in the physician-patient, physician-colleague, and instructor-student relationships in order to improve the quality of the services.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Islamic and Iranian culture were taken into consideration in developing the guideline. Accordance with the administrative and educational conditions of the universities was ensured in developing the guideline and its acceptance was ensured through extensive surveys. Thus, it is expected that this guideline will be very effective in enhancing professional commitment in medical universities.
authors.affiliation: Medical Ethics and History of Medicine Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Saeedeh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saeedi Tehrani
authors.affiliation: Fetal and Neonatal Research Center, Vali-asr Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Fatemeh
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nayeri
authors.affiliation: Medical Ethics and History of Medicine Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Alireza
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parsapoor
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jafarian
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Labaf
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Azim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mirzazadeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Disease, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hamid
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Emadi Kouchak
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology and Hematology, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shahi
authors.affiliation: Medical Ethics and History of Medicine Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Nazafarin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ghasemzadeh
authors.affiliation: Medical Ethics and History of Medicine Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Asghari
mesh_terms: D005180:Faculty, Medical / Q000941:ethics*; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D007514:Islam; D010820:Physicians / Q000941:ethics*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards*; D028743:Professional Misconduct / Q000941:ethics*; D014495:Universities