In all the occupations, workers are required to maintain important limits in order to defend themselves, their clients and the agency with which they operate. Such boundaries are intended to ensure the relationships between workers and clients remain respectful, particularly though operating on very personal and challenging topics.

What are professional boundaries?

Limits that secure the space between the professional’s control and the insecurity of the customer. Establishing clear limits benefits both the patient/client and the doctor, dentist, nurse or other health care professional by managing or restricting this power difference. This boundary setting makes a secure link between the clinician and the patient on the basis of the wishes of the patient.

What is the zone of helpfulness?

The following actions can fall under the zone of helpfulness:

• Responding to all medical needs
• The region where a number of encounters are supposed to occur for productivity and client safety
• Foresee future requirements
• Advocacy

What can be classified as over-involvement?

The following actions can be classified as over-involvement and are considered the impact of professionalism negatively:

• Boundary crossing
• Boundary violation
• Sexual misconduct

Boundary crossing

• Deliberate or accidental actions that breach ethical boundaries without long-term negative consequences.
• accept a present from a patient

Boundary violation

• Actions that affect the patient
• Reversal of Position
• The Secret
• Double Binds
• The needs of the doctor, dentist, nurse, midwife, physiotherapist, osteopath, chiropractor, psychologist, counsellor or other healthcare worker are being served rather than the patients’
• Technical right indulgence-access to medical records
• A clinician who reveals personal knowledge or transmits personal emotions to a patient;

Sexual misconduct

• Physical interaction with a patient against his or her consent
• Consensus on sexual interaction with a customer
• Dating/marrying with a former patient
• Unsuitable touch
• Use of pornographic language

What are the warning signs of unhealthy boundaries?

If you are professional and find yourself taking part in any of these activities, you must immediately try to stop them:

• Share family matters or private aspects of your life with your patient.
• Keeping the Patient Secrets
• You get aggressive when confronted about an encounter with a patient.
• Receive presents from patients or families;
• Speak to patients about your professional desires or failure to do so;
• Giving more time or focus on certain patients
• Provide confidential contact details or money to patients
• Failure to set limits for a patient
• Devote service time on patients who are not allocated to you
• Believe like you know that the patient’s concerns are better than the other treatment team members.
• Talk to the patients badly about the co-workers or hospital.

Tips on maintaining professional boundaries

If you feel that you are indulging in any type of activity that can harm your professionalism or is going against the code of ethics, you can take the following steps in order to try to stop it:

• Avoid worrying for families, friends, and people you’re doing business with, change tasks if necessary.
• Don’t use inflammatory words, y0ou must think thoroughly before you speak.
• Do not make sexual remarks or jokes as it might leave a negative impression on the other person.
• Contact is used properly
• Do not allow gifts, bonds, money or other valuables from patients or their families as this will lower the professionalism, which can give rise to unprofessional bondings.
• Maintain a professional partnership at all times;
• Do not meet or waste additional time with a person who is not part of your task.
• Do not exchange personal or financial information with a patient or family member;
• Enrol in a professional boundaries course.

Professional boundaries course

The professional boundaries course lets you expand knowledge and accountability about the creation and protection of ethical boundaries. The course is useful if you have questions about border retention or disciplinary procedures. This refers to cases where there are questions, suspicions or conclusions concerning:

• Inappropriate mental or sexual relations with subordinates
• Sexualised relationship with patients
• Unsuitable usage of touch
• Sexual Harassment
• Sexualised or inappropriate words

Who is this course designed for?

The course is designed for the people working in human roles, covering medicine, nursing, social care, ministry, education, counselling, criminal justice, corporate and political environments.

If you are engaged in any such profession that you feel you might be crossing your professional boundaries, it is highly recommended that you start following the tips mentioned above.