Why can’t GPs be friends with their patients?
I believe that placing blanket restrictions on personal relationships between doctors and their patients is detrimental to our ability to deliver quality care.
In the absence of meaningful rapport, the doctor will not be deemed worthy of trust, and important patient concerns may not even be broached.
Furthermore, advice that is offered may not be as readily accepted unless a bond is there to build on.
Relationship is fundamental to the ability to communicate, an absolute essential in medical interactions.