Introduction
A conflict of interest occurs when a
nurse's personal, business, commercial, political, academic or financial interests, or the interests of the nurse's family or friends, interfere with the nurse's professional responsibilities or a
client's best interests.
Standards
1.
| Nurses identify and seek to avoid actual, potential or perceived conflicts of interest.
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2.
| Nurses avoid any behaviours including promoting private or business interests that place their personal gain ahead of their professional responsibilities.
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3.
| Nurses handle all types of conflict of interest by identifying the problem, discussing it with the appropriate people and managing it ethically.
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4.
| Nurses fully and accurately disclose, to the appropriate persons, any relationships, affiliations, financial interests or personal interests that may create a conflict of interest.
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5.
| Nurses follow BCCNM's Bylaws when they advertise or promote professional services or products.
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6.
| Nurses recognise the potential for gifts of any value to affect objectivity and use professional judgment when considering their acceptance.
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7.
| Nurses only accept funds from commercial sources in the form of an unrestricted grant paid to the organization sponsoring the professional activity.
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Glossary
Client: individual, family, group, population or entire community receiving nursing care or services from a nurse.
Commercial source: business or organization whose primary purpose is the for-profit sale of goods or services.
Nurses: licensed practical nurses, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses, licensed graduate nurses, employed student nurses, and employed student psychiatric nurses.
Unrestricted grant: funding given without constraints or conditions.
Revision history
Approved by board: March 1, 2026 | Bylaw in-force: April 1, 2026
Effective April 1, 2026, this ethics standard, and any amendments to it, is made a bylaw under the authority of the
Health Professions and Occupations Act, B.C.