Physiotherapy video series - Boundary issues

Physiotherapists must communicate clearly with their patients and gain consent before carrying out any treatment. Clear communication is particularly important when treatment involves sensitive or intimate areas of a patient’s body. Informed consent must be recorded in the patient records each time, along with any potential miscommunications and misunderstandings that have occurred, in order to safeguard both the physiotherapist and the patient.

If a patient initiates inappropriate contact, this must be recorded in the records. The patient should be referred to another physiotherapist for treatment.