Never let the patient believe he or she was abandoned even if the patient was referred to another physician for treatment of the complication. A very specific communication must occur between the physician and the patient before the physician can treat the patient. That communication must result in proper informed consent, namely, adequate disclosure, if the treatment is to start. Informed consent is derived from the principle that each individual has the right to determine what shall be done to his or her own body. This doctrine has imposed on physicians and surgeons a duty to fully inform a patient about the proposed treatment or operation, including the risk, as well as the alternatives to a proposed operation or treatment.
Laws dealing with informed consent vary significantly among states.
The caring physician who communicates interest in the patient's welfare has the equivalent of a bulletproof vest when the malpractice bullets fire. This doesn't mean you won't get sued, but demonstrating compassion during treatment greatly diminishes the risk of a suit. Chaperone Always have a female chaperone present during examination of a female patient by a male physician. A sexual familiarity charge is difficult to defend without a witness. Failure to adhere to this advice has caused great grief among some physicians.