What the Code is for
The Code states the professional values, responsibilities, and accountabilities of nurses, and its purpose is to guide ethical practice. It gives you a framework for working through ethical dilemmas no matter your role or setting, and it lays a foundation that national laws, regulations, and professional standards can build on.
Work on the 2021 revision began in 2019, led by an expert steering group, ICN board members representing member countries, and ICN staff. Alongside English, the Code is published in Spanish, French, and German.
What changed
The revised Code is organized into four sections that map the main elements of ethical conduct:
- nurses and patients or other people requiring care
- nurses and practice
- nurses and the profession
- nurses and global health
The previous edition also had four sections: nurses and people, nurses and practice, nurses and the profession, and nurses and coworkers. The major change is the addition of global health, which centers the nurse's role in confronting the health inequities the pandemic laid bare.
The revision also takes on issues the earlier code never addressed: the digital explosion and social media, artificial intelligence in care settings, human genome technology, population health and the Sustainable Development Goals, and the health consequences of environmental and climate change.
A living document
Each section pairs its standards with a chart showing how they apply in practice, which helps you translate principle into action. The Code only means anything as a living document, applied to the real conditions of nursing wherever care is delivered. Every nurse and nursing student should study it, reflect on it, and make it part of daily practice, in direct care, education, research, management, or policy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the ICN Code of Ethics for Nurses?
It is a global statement of the professional values, responsibilities, and accountabilities of nurses, maintained by the International Council of Nurses. It gives you a framework for working through ethical dilemmas in any role or setting and a foundation that national laws and professional standards can build on.
When was the ICN Code first adopted, and when was it last revised?
The ICN first adopted an international code of ethics for nurses in 1953. The current edition is the 2021 revision, the most heavily updated in years, with work beginning in 2019.
What are the four sections of the revised Code?
The 2021 Code is organized into nurses and patients or other people requiring care, nurses and practice, nurses and the profession, and nurses and global health.
What changed in the 2021 revision?
The biggest change is the new section on nurses and global health, which centers the nurse's role in confronting health inequities the COVID-19 pandemic exposed. The revision also addresses topics the earlier code never covered, including social media, artificial intelligence in care, human genome technology, population health and the Sustainable Development Goals, and climate change.
Does the ICN Code replace my country's nursing code of ethics?
No. The ICN Code is a global framework that national laws, regulations, and professional standards build on. In the United States, for example, nurses also follow the American Nurses Association Code of Ethics.
In what languages is the Code published?
Alongside English, the ICN publishes the Code in Spanish, French, and German.