All about elephants in rooms and dogs that do not bark in the night: boundary violations and the health professional in India
- PMID: 22556445
- PMCID: PMC3339229
- DOI: 10.4103/0019-5545.94654
All about elephants in rooms and dogs that do not bark in the night: boundary violations and the health professional in India
Abstract
Sexual and non-sexual boundary violations occur in the health professional-patient relationship all over the world as well as in India. However, the issue is rarely, if ever, discussed here in a frank and rational manner. This paper discusses the challenges faced by all health professionals and particularly mental health professionals in handling this problem in India. Health professionals can now either let things remain as they are or try to change things for the better, despite the inherent risks in attempting the latter. Since knowledge about boundary issues is essential for effective healthcare, prevention of boundary violations by oneself and reducing harm to patients should a violation occur by another professional, it is important that all health professionals are aware of the issues involved.
Keywords: Doctor–patient relationship; India; health professional; medical ethics; mental health; non-sexual boundary violations; sexual boundary violations.
Conflict of interest statement
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