ENTtoday

How to Handle Romantic Advances from a Patient

by Donna Petrozzello •

Additionally, a physician may be the target of a civil lawsuit by a patient when the relationship comes to an end. Using the defense that the relationship was consensual is typically not a strong one, given societal views that physicians are in the power position when it comes to initiating, or ending, a physician-patient relationship.

If a physician is found to have engaged in sexual misconduct with a patient, he or she may be sanctioned by a state medical board, which can dole out any number of punishments, not limited to censuring the physician privately or publicly or revoking his or her license to practice medicine, said Steven M. Harris, Esq., a health care attorney with the law firm McDonald Hopkins, LLC in Chicago and author of the “Legal Matters” column in ENTtoday.

Harris advises physicians to tell patients, in no uncertain terms, that flirtatious behavior isn’t welcome. “It’s very clear that a physician cannot engage in flirtatious activity with a patient. If the activity continues on, the physician has no option but to terminate the relationship,” he added. “I would follow up a termination in writing and tell the patient: You may seek a physician of your choice, or, if you need a recommendation, we are happy to provide you [with] three names.”

How to Discourage Flirtatious Patients

  • Bring a medical assistant into the exam room. A third person can squash a patient’s urge to flirt and also serve as a witness to the appropriateness of the physician-patient encounter.
  • Don’t let a reassuring pat on the back, warm handshake or comforting hug be misconstrued. Doctors must be careful that patients don’t perceive their compassionate care to mean they are interested in pursuing a deeper relationship.
  • Preserve the personal space between yourself and your patient. Wear a protective mask when performing sensitive clinical procedures and exams that require you to be close to a patient’s head.
  • Keep the conversation polite but focused on a clinical topic. Don’t engage in flirtatious banter with patients or entertain their suggestive comments.
  • Be sensitive to the fact that flirting can occur. Learn to recognize the subtle signs of flirting and quickly put an end to the behavior.