Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Post-termination sexual boundary violations.

Glen O Gabbard1

  • 1Baylor Psychiatry Clinic, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston-Galveston Psychoanalytic Institute, Houston, TX, USA. ggabbard@bcm.tmc.edu

The Psychiatric Clinics of North America
|September 18, 2002
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

The Decline and Fall of Neutrality in Psychoanalytic Discourse.

Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association·2022
Same author

Narcissism and suicide risk.

Annals of general psychiatry·2022
Same author

Psychometric properties of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) in healthcare professionals.

Trends in psychiatry and psychotherapy·2021
Same author

The "dragons of primeval days": Termination and the persistence of the infantile.

The International journal of psycho-analysis·2021
Same author

The Analyst and the Virus.

Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association·2021
Same author

Return of the Repressed: Bong Joon-Ho's Parasite.

Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry·2020

Psychiatrists must maintain a strict ethical boundary, prohibiting sexual contact even after therapy ends. This protects vulnerable patients from exploitation and preserves the integrity of the therapeutic relationship for future care.

Area of Science:

  • Psychiatry
  • Medical Ethics
  • Psychology

Background:

  • Professional ethics codes aim to prevent misconduct that could harm patients.
  • Existing guidelines prohibit sexual contact between psychiatrists and current patients due to exploitation risks.
  • The vulnerability of patients persists even after the termination of psychiatric treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the ethical justifications for an absolute prohibition of sexual contact between psychiatrists and former patients.
  • To analyze the enduring impact of transference and power dynamics in the psychiatrist-former patient relationship.
  • To underscore the importance of maintaining professional boundaries for effective long-term patient care.

Main Methods:

  • Ethical analysis of professional conduct in psychiatry.
Keywords:
Mental Health TherapiesProfessional Patient Relationship

Related Experiment Videos

  • Review of established ethical codes and their application to post-termination relationships.
  • Discussion of psychological principles, including transference and countertransference, in the context of psychiatric practice.

    • Main Results:

    • Transference and countertransference feelings can persist long after therapy concludes.
    • A significant power differential remains due to the fiduciary nature of the psychiatrist-patient relationship.
    • The potential for future sexual relationships undermines the conditions essential for effective therapy.

    Conclusions:

    • An absolute prohibition against sexual contact with former patients is ethically sound and necessary.
    • Maintaining this boundary upholds the duty of care and preserves the potential for future therapeutic engagement.
    • The American Psychiatric Association's stance on this issue is supported by ethical and clinical considerations.