Volume 178 - Issue 9
In reply: The New South Wales Medical Board policy on treating self and family
Author: Brian C McCaughan
Med J Aust 2003; 178 (9): 472. || doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2003.tb05304.x
Published online: 5 May 2003
Published online: 5 May 2003
In reply: Tracy's letter seems to focus on age. The Board's policy about treating family members is not about age, but about the wisdom or otherwise of this practice for medical practitioners at any stage of their career. The policy is not mandatory, but reflects what the Board considers to be prudent practice. The policy does not prohibit writing referrals or repeat prescriptions, but emphasises the importance of having an independent treating practitioner responsible for initiation of treatment and ongoing management.
The New South Wales Medical Board is not alone in having such a policy, with similar views being expressed by UK's General Medical Council, the Medical Council of New Zealand, and Canadian, American and other Australian medical boards. The Australian Medical Association position statement on the "Health of medical practitioners" emphasises the importance of medical practitioners and their families having their own general practitioners.
The case studies were published following a request from members of the profession for the Board to provide examples of problems arising through treating themselves or family members. Sadly, there are many more instances than the five referred to in the article.
The doctors were certainly not ordinary once their attempts to treat family members went astray, but the point is that they had been ordinary doctors who got into difficulties because they crossed the professional–personal boundary.