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The importance of professional boundaries

Maintaining public confidence in the psychoanalytic profession is at the core of what we do.

The importance of professional boundaries

It is the responsibility of every Registrant on our Register to meet the Standards of Conduct, Practice and Ethics we uphold. A core tenet of these Standards is understanding, adhering to and maintaining professional boundaries with every patient.

At the BPC, we understand our responsibility of upholding our standards, and we take this seriously. We understand that the standards we set are an important part of supporting safe, psychoanalytic therapy and at the core of these standards, is maintaining professional boundaries.

On this page, you’ll find a collation of resources we hold, as a regulator, around professional boundaries in the psychoanalytic field. Scroll below to learn more about what educational resources are available to our Registrants on this matter, what support we offer for those that wish to voice a concern to us, more information on our Fitness to Practice process and future commitments.

BPC Registrants & Professional Boundaries

Our first standard: Make the care of patients your primary concern outlines the importance of professional boundaries. Swipe below.

"Every Registrant of the BPC has a duty to uphold the confidence in our profession.This involves observing and deeply understanding our duties as psychoanalytic practitioners, around boundaries." BPC Chair, Lee Smith.

At the BPC we consider any breach or degradation of professional boundaries to be a very serious violation of psychoanalytic practise. This is a failture to act in a patient’s interest at puts them at risk of harm in many ways that can also result in public protection concerns. The BPC may investigate these concerns, particularly where we’re contacted by the patient.

What to do if you need to report your concerns about a BPC Registrant

If you have reason to believe a BPC Registrant has not maintained professional boundaries with their patient/s, then it is of vital importance that you contact the BPC with these concerns. Visit our concerns page to read our step-by-step guide on what our concerns process entails.

If you’d like to know more about how our Fitness to Practice Process works, here’s a breakdown of the stages your concern will go through:

1. We receive a complaint which is reviewed by our clinical adviser for acceptance. Is this urgent? An interim Order Hearing is prepared if the matter is urgent 2. If accepted, complaint is prepared for our screening committee who consist of Registrant and lay members. 4. If referred to a full hearing, a Panel of registrant and lay members will impose a sanction 3. Disposal options available to the Screening committee: Adjourn the case for further information; Close the case with no further action; Close the case with no further action but issue advice to the Registrant about their future conduct; Issue a Warning to the Registrant; Refer the case to the Fitness to Practise Committee Conditions; Reprimand;​ 5. Sanctions available to the Fitness to Practise Committee at a hearing ​ Suspension;​ Termination from the register;

"Professional boundaries are at the core of patient safety and they are something that we take very seriously. We realise that we have a crucial role to play in continually emphasising the importance of this." BPC CEO, Greg Ross-Sampson.

Our Member Institutions play an instrumental role in upholding the Regulatory model

As the professional home for our Registrants, our Member Institutions uphold our standards and have a crucial role in instilling them through their trainings and professional events.

Click here to learn more about our relationship with our Member Institutions and how they work with us to uphold our regulatory duties.

Crisis Lines

Standards of Conduct, Practice and Ethics & Guidance

All BPC Registrants must download and keep a copy of the Standards and corresponding guidance notes, reading these in full and ensuring each point is understood. If you choose to print these documents, please ensure you keep up to date with the latest versions as the guidance notes will be updated from time to time.
Standards of Conduct, Practice & Ethics

Duty of Candour

All Healthcare professionals have a professional responsibility to be open, honest, and transparent with patients when things go wrong. This obligation is known as the professional Duty of Candour.
Duty of Candour

Supporting safe therapy

Learn more about the importance of safe therapy and how the BPC work to uphold this through our regulatory model.
Supporting safe therapy

Future work in this area: