This policy is designed to protect both patients and staff from abuse or allegations of abuse and to assist patients to make an informed choice about their examinations and consultations.
The medical consultation is a challenge to both clinician and patient, whether in the community or in hospital. The need for more detailed discussions with patients, along with their increasing autonomy and right to make choices in relation to their clinical care and treatment, has affected the traditional role of the doctor-patient relationship. This has made maintaining appropriate professional boundaries in the doctor-patient consultation more challenging, however, the guidance from national and regulatory bodies is clear that it is always the health professional’s responsibility to do so.