About us

The Alberta Committee for Conscience Protection represents physicians in the province who adhere to the time-tested Hippocratic standards of medicine. The Committee was formed following the legalization of medical assistance in dying (MAiD) in Canada over concern that physicians would be forced to act against their deepest convictions. We promote the importance of the exercise of conscience in medical practice to various levels of government, professional organizations and the public. A diverse population requires a diverse medical profession. Physicians may decline to participate in various procedures because they do not consider them to be good medicine and they, just like their fellow citizens, differ on what they believe is good medicine, most especially in an area as serious as MAiD.

The concept of “freedom of conscience” has been misunderstood in some quarters in recent years so it must be stated that freedom of conscience is the right to do what one must, not what one wants. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines conscience as “…the sense or consciousness of the moral goodness or blameworthiness of one’s own conduct, intentions, or character together with a feeling of obligation to do right or be good.”  Collins English Dictionary adds that “Conscience is doing what you believe is right even though it might be unpopular, difficult, or dangerous.”

“First do no harm” is one of the principal tenets of medical ethics, so we assert that governments and professional bodies have an interest in defending the exercise of conscience, as it motivates physicians to give their best, ultimately protecting the public.