Should managers have a code of conduct?

Abstract

Much attention is currently being given to values and ethics in the NHS. Issues of accountability are being explored as a consequence of the Cadbury report. The Institute of Health Services Management (IHSM) is considering whether managers should have a code of ethics. Central to this issue is what managers themselves think; the application of such a code may well stand or fall by whether managers are prepared to have ownership of it, and are prepared to make it work. Paul Bayliss reports on a survey of managers' views.