RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Engagement without entanglement: a framework for non-sexual patient–physician boundaries
JF Journal of Medical Ethics
JO J Med Ethics
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Institute of Medical Ethics
SP 383
OP 388
DO 10.1136/medethics-2021-107580
VO 49
IS 6
A1 Appel, Jacob M
YR 2023
UL http://jme.bmj.com/content/49/6/383.abstract
AB The integrity of the patient–physician relationship depends on maintaining professional boundaries. While ethicists and professional organisations have devoted significant consideration to the subject of sexual boundary transgressions, the subject of non-sexual boundaries, especially outside the mental health setting, has been largely neglected. While professional organisations may offer guidance on specific subjects, such as accepting gifts or treating relatives, as well as general guidance on transparency and conflict of interest, what is missing is a principle-based method that providers can use to assess non-sexual interactions with patients that transcend norms of practice. This paper attempts to offer an operational model for such assessment that considers not only the traditional emphasis on beneficence, but also incorporates concerns over entanglement and concordance.